Do you think its better to have family or strangers in your business ?
By ronnyb
@ronnyb (6113)
Jamaica
November 11, 2008 5:21pm CST
My friend recently started a business in which she employed two of her brothers and her brothers fiance .The business was doing well for a time until she noted that the profits started to dwindle about the fifth month into the business.She decided to watch it for the next couple of months before she spoke to the brothers about it .He told her that this was due to a a reduction in the number of customers .She accepted this because she felt that he was her brother and wouldnt lie howeer she decided that she would have to be more vigilant in the future as this situation was unacceptable.The dwindling profits would continue for some more months before she said anything else to him ,this time she suggested that he should try and market the business more to which he agreed , but still the profits kept falling.She eventually decided that she would investigate the matter by staying from her day job and monitor the situation for a one week period .She would come unnoticed to the business via a secret door and watch the the camera she had secretly installed .To her dismay she realised that during the day they did very little work and did no marketing of the business as they had agreed .In addition they were lazy and unwilling to accommodate the customers demands.In one instance they were rude to the customers and even suggested that one customer go to a competitor i she felt she could get a better deal there because he didnt care .Still far worse was to come when she realized that they made sales without giving the customer a receipt and did not enter it into the sales book.The money they earned from these sales they would put in their pockets .
Now I know family should come first but there are often time when starngers will do more for you.Have you ever had that experience
3 people like this
16 responses
@chris_h360 (108)
• Canada
12 Nov 08
It doesn't matter i think its whoever can get the job done or do the job very well or the best. Sometimes people sacrifice having a very good stranger join and would rather of family because they know that that worker would never pose a threat and would be very open to the business or company. And then sometimes the family memeber might just be very good with the job and it would be hard to find someone else to replace but keep in mind theres a way better chance you will find someone whos more fit for your job then that family member because theres a lot of skilled people in the world vs that family memeber.
@baileyq (67)
• Philippines
12 Nov 08
I have a business that I put up myself. I didn't hire any member of my family even though they asked for a job simply because I didn't want to have to blame them or be suspicious of them if things started to go wrong. This is a surefire way to ruin family relationships. Imagine what would happen if you had to fire them. No more relaxing, quiet family reunions or celebrations. On the other hand, I have fired people who were not related to me at all. They were opportunists who couldn't be trusted at all, either. Your friend was right in making the decision to secretly install a camera. I also know friends who grew up together, set up a business, closed down the business, and haven't spoken or seen each other in years because of the unpleasant circumstances that took place before they had to close shop. It really doesn't make a difference who you go into business with or who you hire. Trust has to be earned. If a person proves not to be trustworthy, move on and save the business.
@robinemz (211)
• Philippines
20 Nov 08
it's so sad that there are people who can cheat on their family members. i hope that doesn't happen to me in the future. well as a member of the family you should at least know or get an idea of your family members attitude. as for me, i am soon to engage in a business with my parents. i know im in good hands with them. i think that it doesn't matter who you're engaged with (family nor strangers), the important thing to note is that as an owner/part owner of a business, you should be there or at least be there a couple of times a week to check on what's going on in the business. if your friend had done this from the start, maybe that situation their into wont happen..
@kayree2002 (259)
• United States
11 Nov 08
I can't say that I've been in a situation like that. And most that I've heard of it wasn't that the relatives were stealing but more that they were lax because they figured they had job security. Sometimes it was also because they were jealous and they figured that they could just reap the benefits but not contribute too much. Anyway, the point is that I don't think that family members should necessarily be trusted to run your business based just on trust. Training and experience should also be an important part of it also.
@AnneMarie39 (77)
• United States
12 Nov 08
I think when you mix business with family and/or friends it can lead to some very uncomfortable situations. This sounds like a very uncomfortable situation! Evidently they don't put their sister first, so is family really coming first? No There are too many feelings involved when it's personal and it's personal because it's family or even friends. I think it's better to have strangers.
@cutepenguin (6431)
• Canada
12 Nov 08
I haven't but I can see how relatives would feel like they had job security and wouldn't need to try as hard. This is shameful, how her brothers behaved.
@annjilena (5618)
• United States
12 Nov 08
stranger somtimes treat you better then your family i have experienced this before i greet strangers sometimes family try to hold you back are put you down are in this case try to get over on their on family member she was taking a lose because they wasn,t doing business right she should have fired them and hired strangers to do the job this is trebbile what they are doing here and she is trying to make a living some family do this to their own family members.
@craftcatcher (3699)
• United States
12 Nov 08
That's really sad that her family took advantage of the situation like that. I haven't had that experience before since the business that I started was a home business with one employee.. me. I asked my husband to work with me but he wouldn't do it so it stayed a very small business!
If I were to do it again and expand in the future I would only trust 2 people to work for me that are family. The temptation to abuse the situation is just too great for me to trust anyone else close to me. I guess I understand human nature well enough to know how that could be a problem.
@robert19ph (4577)
• Philippines
12 Nov 08
hello ronnyb,
Your friend and us have the same experienced only it's my wife's nephew and cousins. We put an internet and gaming cafe when my wife resigned. At first, we do manage our business personally and I can say that our business is really at boom but when the company I'm working for sent me and my family abroad for two years that's the time my wife's relative took over the business. Aside from that we let them stay at our house so they can take care of it while we're away. We're giving them allowance and salary. We issued one year checks for their rentals in the cafe and instructed them to deposit the income to the bank. After two or three months of calling them up, they informed us that the cafe is not doing good to the extent that the check for their monthly rentals bounced including our water and electric connection were cut too for they're not paying. It's so really hard for us to accept it's so hard to start a business. Aside from that, the separation of my wife was invested there. It's an experienced that I'll never forget.
So as for me, better hire someone you don't know than hiring your family for if you hire your family you're ashame to ask what happen. They're not really concern for you for it's not their money. But most of all, be the one to manage your own business.
@lovemygirls2503 (431)
• United States
12 Nov 08
Yes, I feel family should come first in almost every case. But when it comes to business I would be a little worried. I've never owned my company or business but my father has. I would really have to think about it carefully make sure that there the right person for the job. Make sure that they'll need to get done so the business runs right. Happy Mylotting!!!!
@iamfine (740)
• China
12 Nov 08
In my opinion, if family members can do that kind of thing to you, then strangers can do the same too. The best way to keep your business safe is to instal a machine inspector, to keep people from stealing, or keep the manager from stealing money from your profit into their own profit.
If it is possible, it would be better that the owner keep an eye on the business by yourselves.
@jayyerex (224)
• Canada
12 Nov 08
I guess it could go either way. I've known employees in the past who are just as deceptive and unprofessional as your brothers and their fiance. I've also known complete strangers that have been that way as well. It all comes down to how responsible and driven these people are. If they feel that what they are doing is not worth their time or they fell that they don't need to do the work because it is not imperative to their survival then there is no way to convince them to do the job. In this case you need to treat them just like any other employee and get rid of them. They are stealing from you and causing your business' reputation to go down the tubes. This is not just a case of them flubbing the books to line theri own pockets. they are directly insulting you, using you and destroying that which you have invested in. If I found out that one of my employees or family member was doing this to me and my business I would fall on them like a hammer and get someone else to do the job. Family does not treat other family members that way and if they do they do not deserve to be involved with you and your business.
@hahaweb (111)
• China
12 Nov 08
Hi, I think it depends on how much you know the guys, no matter they are from your family or not. In fact, if you have family members in your company, they maybe jealous about your success instead of trying to contribute. If you hire strangers, they won't have this kind of feeling. Hence, my point is family members are good as long as you let them understand the business belongs to the whole family and they can share the profit. I haven't start my company yet, but i will.
@naseeha (1382)
• India
11 Nov 08
Strangers or friends.. both if left unattended would start taking advantage of the situation. It is not that all relatives will cheat or all friends will cheat or strangers will not. It depends upon the situation. IF we give them room to cheat they surely will. Your friend must have been more vigilant as soon as the sales sstarted dropping. Anybody who starts a business must be well into it and check the records often. Otherwise people whom we trusted so much will try and cheat on the piece of cake..It always happens..It is a crime to cheat.. but it is an even worse crime to let somebody cheat you and remain blissfully unaware.. So trust everybody... but check the records and cross check on them..
Have a great day...
good post
@apples99 (6556)
• United States
12 Nov 08
Well thats kind of a tough one, but I guess it depends on how trust worthy that family member is and if they have shown you over the years of your life that you can count them because unfortunately you cant always trust every single family member and the same go's for strangers but you can do a background check if you choose to employ someone outside the your family circle and yes in some cases it can be better to higher someone outside the family especially when it comes to employing someone for your own business.
