Mistake: 'All in the Family'

Over my career, I’ve had the opportunity to work with firms of all sizes, from start-up architecture practices to 100-year-old construction management firms. In each case, the client has asked me to help them take their business to the next level, on terms they define. Often, it is through an organic growth strategy. No growth can take place, though, until a company identifies business practices to take advantage of or to improve.

In a service industry, the largest challenges are in hiring and managing people to deliver what we promise to our clients. It should be no surprise that here we will find a common mistake: hiring a friend or family member.

To be clear, I am not against friends or family. What I am against is hiring people that are not qualified to fulfill roles which they are required to perform. I’ve had clients who hired sisters, brothers, children, in-laws, wives and husbands, who over time become ex-wives, ex-husbands and siblings that “tattle” to mom about what is going on in the business. To be fair, close friends and family reflect something that the person off the street doesn’t: trust. For the person off the street, trust is an earned value. But too often, trust outweighs the need for qualifications to fulfill roles from President to COO to Director of Business Development.

At some point, trust and qualifications collide. This is where acrimony and terminations crop up. What’s the lesson to be learned? “Don’t hire family”? No: that would be too shortsighted. Rather, my advice is to hire within the skills you require for long and sustained growth.

Just because your sister is unemployed and has a degree in Sociology doesn’t mean she should become your CFO. Because as your firm develops a client base, repeats work and delivers on its technical excellence in engineering, she will be unable to keep pace and understand the requirements of AP/AR, accounting and cash management. The same can be true of any individual poorly aligned with the roles they are required to play.

Don't make this mistake. Friends and family in whom you place great trust may play long and sustainable roles in your organization in less volatile positions such as administration. In the end, it will save you and your firm losses in productivity, efficiency and morale that cannot be sustained in a challenging and global economy.

Karen Compton, CPSM. Karen Compton is principal of A3K Consulting (Glendale, CA), a business development and strategic planning firm specializing in the architecture, engineering and construction industries. Ms. Compton is also the founder of Industry Speaks™, a web-based business-to-business portal that connects AEC firms with experienced consultants, provides peer reviews of consultants, reports on key industry trends, and publishes expert reviews of professional courses and books. Contact her at kcompton@a3kconsulting.com.