When entrepreneurs start a new business, they’re looking for ways to really hit the ground running and hasten their growth. In the inspection industry, that early grind can be difficult to navigate alone, which is why we constantly see family members step up to offer a helping hand. Whether it’s as a marketer, a bookkeeper, or another pair of hands on an inspection, it can be a great benefit to partner with a spouse, sibling, in-law, or child early on who can offer a bit more flexibility than a typical employee.
Family members can be an asset to businesses after seeing some growth as well, once extra help is needed to handle increased demand. Whatever the situation, the opportunity to hire family will likely come up at some point as a business owner, but some might not be prepared for the complex factors that go into this unique dynamic.
From the vantage point of home inspection franchisors, we’ve seen family members work extremely well as employees, and we’ve also seen situations where it hasn’t gone so well. If you’re thinking about starting or expanding your business with a family member, here are some things to consider so that you can manage that partnership to its full potential!
The Benefits of Working With Family
Potential Problems, and How to Avoid Them
Insights from the VP
Before we leave you for today, we thought it might be a good idea to have your Vice President Chris Bates share some final thoughts. National Property Inspections, Inc. was started in 1987 by Chris’ father Roland Bates, and the two have spent a lot of time learning how to balance a working relationship with their father-son relationship. Here’s what Chris had to say about the subject:
“I worked for my father for roughly 10 years. It can be very rewarding, but very challenging at times. The biggest suggestion I can make is that you keep your family life and work life separate.
One thing that both he and I did at the office is refer to each other by our first names. Not as a show of any disrespect, just that we wanted to be seen as work colleagues, not father and son.
If you can keep that bit of distance, it can be very rewarding to work with a family member. However, just like any other work colleague, you must still treat each other with the same amount of respect.”
Thanks for sharing your insights, Chris! When it comes to balancing professionalism with a family-like atmosphere, no one does it better.
For more on business growth, marketing insights, and inspection industry news, keep right here on the Franchise Informant! If you’re interested in learning more about franchising with National Property Inspections, you can request a free info packet, or talk with our recruitment team directly.
