S. Dale High Center for Family Business
Most of us are “do it yourselfers” and like to solve our own problems. In fact, a “roll up your sleeves” attitude has been key to many family's success. So, when it comes to family issues, when do we decide we need an objective outsider to help us? Here’s a short checklist:
- When old conflicts and “baggage” begin to affect the family’s ability to plan for the future
- When poor communication is affecting the bottom line
When the lines between people’s family role and business role seem to be blurring- When it becomes difficult to obtain opinions and information from family members, e.g. people are withholding information
- When the natural leader is perceived by others to have an agenda, e.g. not objective
When will a mediator NOT be able to help you?
To be effective, members of the family group must want to resolve their issues: although members of family businesses can disagree about the end goal and the means, all members of the group must want to resolve the major issues. Otherwise the process will be sabotaged.
Would you consider using outside mediation? Why or why not? Has mediation worked for your family enterprise?
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