Family Employees Should Not Be Fireproof

Business owners tend to pussyfoot when faced with the necessity of firing a family member. They want to be loved, they agonize. They just don't like to fire anybody, let alone a relative: “If I fire cousin Charlie, Aunt Emily will never speak to me again.” And the more successful the business, the longer they'll keep the nonperforming family member on the payroll. “Oh hell,” they say, “the business can afford it.”

But businesses can't afford to keep around incompetent relatives whose lack of productivity undermines morale. Moreso, they can't afford to carry disruptive family members who do not support the overall goals of the company, and instead undermine the plans of the competent, motivated family and nonfamily managers.

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