Difficult Dialogue

Haseeb was having dinner with his childhood friends in a community club. During their discussion, he shared his indecisive situation about joining his forefather business. One of the concerns which Haseeb has is regarding his inclination towards the medical profession – it will not align with his family business. So, at this point where he is about to decide his higher education, it is challenging for him to make the final choice.

Other worry he has is regarding the financial growth and career planning. Will it be possible to attain the same level of financial progression and career growth in my family business as compared to a corporate job?

So his friends were sharing few examples with him:

Zakir who was having meal with Haseeb in the club, shared his brother’s, Zohaib, example who is working as a regional sales head in a multi nation company. He has international exposure as he has travelled globally with corporate delegation for trainings and also made expansion decisions for the company. He was fortunate to have a progressive career path in the same company over a span of ten years.

On the contrary, Mubashir, the other friend shared an example of his cousin Majid who is working with his father as an executive. Luckily, he has received recognition as one of the youngest progressive entrepreneurs. He strategically expanded his father’s business from one wholesale entity to retail chain of stores in five different cities.

According to Mubashir, every person’s journey is different and the progression is dependent on various factors – there is no single concrete answer to either go for a job or join a family business. Adding on, an entrepreneurship journey which the ancestors initiate serves as a foundation for the forthcoming generations to move ahead from there. As Mubasshir pointed out, some of the factors which played a vital role in Majid’s family business growth are:

1.?????? Vision – Long-term, realistic and strategically thought vision for the business should be there to serve as a guiding principle for the family firm top level team.

2.????? Regular meetings – Family council meetings should be regularly organized to ensure alignment of family business goals with the vision.

3.????? Designated job responsibilities – The roles and responsibilities of each executive family member should be properly defined, updated and documented – allowing smooth transition among generations.

4.????? Compensation plan – Reward and compensation plan should be in accordance with the market – ensuring justified monetary and non-monetary benefits for both working and silent family members.

5.????? Written Rules – There should be carefully drafted rules for taking on board new family members.

6.????? Investment committee formation – Continuously revisiting the strategy – making necessary changes to work towards the vision implementation.

Conclusively, Mubashir highlighted that it is important to think progressively to compete efficiently in the market whether you are a family business owner or a corporate executive. “So we have to plan strategically for our successful career my friends”, Mubashir smiled as they walked towards the car parking.