Restructuring a Family Business in this Digital Age

 

According to Guthrie-Jensen, the leading Management Training and Consultancy firm in the Philippines and one of the largest in Southeast Asia, the Philippines ranks 11^th worldwide for the most family-owned businesses.

Owning a family business has both its advantage and disadvantage. Sometimes, it could be tricky to decide if the next generation should pursue the company. Or just throw in the towel and start a new one that will be more suitable for the next generation to handle.

You know the popular names when the family business is talked about. And the first name that would probably come to your mind is Tatang himself, the late Henry Sy. Until this day, I still feel in awe at how this Chinese man who just started out as a shoemaker became the wealthiest businessman in the Philippines. Imagine how many sleepless nights he would have endured and how many times he fell and still managed to rise up every time! This is truly a remarkable feat for the Sy Family.

I often cite Henry Sy as an example because I want people to dream big for themselves and their families. Simply relying on what is thrown at you may allow you to survive every day. But why set limitations on your capabilities when you can be more than you can ever realize? Indeed, starting a business is not as easy as just knowing what to sell and having enough capital to start the business. It takes passion and hard work to reach the top.

From a large group of people who attend my seminars, probably only about 2% pursue starting their own business. This is why entrepreneurs belong to a specific “breed” because not everyone has the innate skills that an entrepreneur should have from the start. The primary reason why some people would just rather stay with their 9-5 job is because of FEAR. I would like to let them understand that fear is an everyday occurrence to anyone, mainly dealing with something new; I could not push them too hard. After all, I don’t want them to start a business knowing that they just started it because I was just too insistent. Just like in any kind of decision that you have to make, no matter how many people may push you to take a step. Still, your heart is really not into it. You might as well just do what you think would make you feel better.

The sustainability of a family business takes a lot of work.

Surviving a Family Business

Sustaining a business is a huge task. One must think of how the company would still patronize the company even after many years. Coming up with a plan for resilience in crises is very important. Therefore, the quality of products and services should remain the same no matter how old the business has become. Now, it is quite a challenge how you can still make the company stay the same but still cope with the changing times. According to statistics, individuals who have worked previously in a similar industry are 125% likely to become more successful.

Digitalization has become an essential part of any business. Making all data more accessible with the help of computers is a considerable relief. But more than that, there is also a need to do minor tweaking of the brand, like changing the color or font of the logo, but should still maintain the company’s identity. You may have noticed how some of your favorite brands have changed their logo over the years but still managed to retain their identity and quality.

What are the other changes an old family business needs to make to align its business in this age?

1. Providing additional products and services that would cater to everyone, especially millennials.
2. The use of a website to make the business known not just focuses on the consumers who live nearby but also on people who live in other places.
3. Adding an e-commerce site is a big plus because it makes it easier to get to the consumers. With the busy schedule these days, a large majority prefer to shop online.
4. Look back at the company’s mission and vision. There may also be a need to revise them a bit to show how the company has evolved.
5. Choose the right people to do specific jobs, particularly in marketing. It is not merely sending out flyers, posters, or putting up billboards. There should be a clear message about what the company is all about.
6. Using various social media platforms has become an integral part of any business these days. Thanks to these sites, it is now easier to reach out to customers, which cuts the cost of spending thousands of pesos to buy a few seconds of ads on television.
7. Some issues may have been overlooked for the past years. And the people in the business may not seem too keen on understanding its importance. There may be growth and success over the years. However, it may be lacking some fundamentals of business design.

 

While we know that nothing can be as perfect as we want them to be, family members involved in the business can improve by creating a proper decision-making process and having a clearly defined shared vision. This will enable the business owners to invariably support each other, which will help grow the business.

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You may contact Armando “Butz” Bartolome for questions and more information.

Email: [email protected]

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Website: https:///www.butzbartolome.com