Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/314292
52 • JUNE 2014 • WORLD FENCE NEWS Your single source provider of gates, access controls, operators, hardware and support. Visit ProAccessSystems.com or call (800) 800-3356 today. AT L A N TA ( 7 7 0 ) 9 5 5 - 4 4 11 C H I CAG O ( 6 3 0 ) 4 2 6 - 0 0 2 2 D E N V E R ( 3 0 3 ) 2 8 8 - 7 0 0 3 TA M PA ( 8 13 ) 8 8 1- 12 0 0 SLIDE GATES | SWING GATES | CRASH GATES | TURNSTILES | CUSTOM GATES AND FABRICATION M A D E I N U S A Now manufacturing Aigis Turnstiles! Aigis line of turnstiles acquired from Linear, adding to an already robust line of access control products being manufactured and distributed by Pro Access. Contact us today for all of your turnstile needs. Send us your cartoon ideas for Pete and Jake! We will give full editorial credit if used. Send to: World Fence News 6101 W. Courtyard Dr. • Bldg. 3, Ste. 115 Austin, Texas 78730 E-mail: editor@worldfencenews.com Over the course of my 30 plus years of involvement in the fence in- dustry, I have met and made many ac- quaintances and friends and have been made keenly aware of such things as retirements and, certainly, deaths, both very natural occurrences in our human existence. However, I can't help but wonder if time was taken to properly plan for such developments and therefore also wonder if the act of succession that took place was what the person really and truly wanted. The thrust of this column is basi- cally for those of you who are far enough along in business development yet not so far along that the bulk of it can't apply to you. In other words, while we are never too old to learn, it is much better to learn before going too far. I know this is a topic that many put off as long as possible, for a myr- iad of reasons, but since so many of us are getting older or perhaps are having thoughts about retiring for health rea- sons or simply because "it's time." This might be a good time to chat about some thoughts that you need to crystallize in order for you to properly set that act of succession in motion. Perhaps, the best place to start is by recalling some thoughts that the late Dr. Leon Danko, a contributor of several articles on the subject of fam- ily succession to World Fence News before his death, shared with us. One article in particular, The Twelve Commandments of a Family Owned Business, seems to me as a good jumping off point. I will recall each commandment of Dr. Danko's, and add my thoughts to perhaps crys- tallize some thoughts or ideas for each one of these commandments. Commandment 1 – Thou shalt share thy dream with thy family. Most of us have done this in some fashion or other. However, therein lies the rub. While we have mentioned this idea perhaps with our spouses at the time and perhaps even gotten them in- volved in the business itself, have we really even thought through com- pletely enough the concept of family business owners to discuss the scope of the dream that we had when mak- ing this decision? The answer is "probably not" be- THE HUMAN LINK cause at the inception of this dream, we were full of hope as well as appre- hension, and didn't know enough yet to allow ourselves to dream com- pletely. As the business grew, and we involved additional family members, did we discuss the business with them when they were old enough? Did we know who, if any, of our family, were legitimately interested in the business? The point I think that Dr. Danko made was to involve all of your immediate family members in the dream at the earliest possible opportu- nity. It is in your best interest to do so. Commandment 2 – Thou shalt in- form thy manager(s) and employees "This company will continue forever." How many of us have taken the time at staff meetings or gatherings to impart that position to them? The an- swer is, probably not often enough. However, by doing this early on in the company's life, it goes a long way toward building loyalty and trust, and establishing ownership along with strength of purpose and attention, as to just how serious you are in developing this dream into a positive reality and letting your managers and employees know that in this pursuit, they are vital to its success. Commandment 3 – Thou shalt de- velop a workable organization and make it visible on a chart. In the initial stages of developing a workable organization, the tendency is to try to think of every conceivable situation and incorporate it in the form of putting it on the chart with someone being responsible for overseeing it, de- spite whether (A) You have a qualified or workable person to oversee this re- sponsibility or (B) You micromanage the chart into an unmanageable piece of "drivel." Remember, this is a workable chart in a work-in-progress situation. Not everything needs to be filled in right away. Cover the main areas and some key secondary ones, if possible, and make sure you have the right peo- ple in place to administer and then going forward begin to develop mana- gerial people and consolidate duties where possible. Rome wasn't built in a day. Commandment 4 – Thou shalt continue to improve thy management knowledge, that of the managers and Planning for succession – A topic that is always timely continued on page 54 Helping To Keep The Good Stuff In And The Bad Stuff Out Since 1960. THE FENCEMAN'S FRIEND STRETCHES • LIFTS • ALIGNS • CLAMPS FOR: TIGHT CORNERS, SHORT PULLS, GATES PulJak ® Company LLC P.O. Box 449 • Branford, CT 06405 PHONE: (203) 500-2520 • FAX: (203) 738-1088 E-mail: puljak@comcast.net Visit us on the Web at www.puljakusa.com Designed for those "Impossible" jobs ONLY $95.90 ® MODEL A – 2 1 ⁄2