COVER STORYGlobal markets pose a new challenge for family businesses, for now, competition is not limited to that of friends, with whom agreements can be made; it expands to the whole planet.
Faced with these challenges and opportunities, what must the family business do to survive in the new global world? Most experts agree that the three most important principles are: planning, listening, and communicating.
The most important principle is planning. With few exceptions, a company's longevity cannot be based on luck. A written plan must be made, and the whole family should participate in its creation. Even if they do not participate, all of the family members must be familiar with the plan, in order to understand the company's vision of the future and the role they play in it.
It is advisable to form a board of managers which, preferably, includes external directors, for they can notice things that family members cannot see, precisely because of their nearness to the company and their relatives.
Lastly, it is essential to establish a family board, separate from the board of managers, in which the family members' differing points of view are heard.
The main difference between a company that is family based and one that is not, is that, in the former, both logic and emotions are involved, and any decision can cause reactions that are not necessarily rational. Therefore, adequate mechanisms must be established, so that feelings are kept as far away as possible from daily operations.
Because of the importance of succession, which most Guatemalan companies do not formally take care of, the words of Don A. Schwerzler, Director of the Family Business Institute, should be remembered: "it is never too soon to start planning for succession. In other words, this should be a process and not an event."
In this article, we present some examples of Guatemalan family businesses that have successfully handled the process of growth and succession.
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