FAMILY owned firms in Carlow are being urged to talk about "the elephant in the room" and plan for the survival of their businesses with their family members.
While family businesses make up 40pc of private sector employment in this county, many struggle or fail because they refuse to talk about who will take over the firm within the family in the case of an unexpected death or illness in the family.
It's an awkward topic, however, the long-term survival of any business relies on good contingency and emergency planning.
Carlow Local Enterprise Office (LEO) is bringing family business specialists Karl Hyden and Paddy Ryan to Carlow for an intensive one-day course aimed at families in business this November 8. There are only 12 places on the course which is free-of-charge and takes place in Enterprise House on the O'Brien Road in Carlow.
"This course is a must for anyone who owns or is running a business with their family. There are many fantastic Carlow companies owned by families and we want them to be around for generations to come. It's a tricky conversation to have in business, to choose one son or daughter over another to run the firm, or whatever you need to do in certain unexpected situations. Through the workshop, you have two outside experts who can give you insights focused on the survival of your business, which can really help in taking your emotions to one side," says LEO Head of Enterprise, Kieran Comerford.
Speaking ahead of the course, Karl Hyden of the Family Business Unit is urging Carlow businesses to make a contingency plan to protect against "the unexpected". "A sudden or unexpected event, such as the unknown effects of Brexit or the death of key people, will create instability in the business and cause unnecessary conflict between family members as well as fuel internal environments of uncertainty, confusion, fear, and reactivity that can have a wide-reaching negative ripple effect to all those who rely on the business for their livelihood," says Mr Hyden.
Many families in business cannot see the risks and threats or may not want to say anything in front of family members at the risk of "appearing disloyal", says Mr Hyden.
"It is easier to spot the threats by involving somebody from the outside when putting together a solid contingency plan. You need to make business decisions from a clinical perspective and it is easier when there is somebody else taking a view as an outsider."
Carlow is the first county in Ireland where Karl Hyden and his fellow family business specialist, Paddy Ryan, will deliver this course.
The course will combine key models from management theory specifically relevant to the unique challenges experienced by family business owners/managers of small and medium sized family businesses. It will also help participants to begin to develop their own contingency plan, offer powerful peer learning opportunities, informal networking, and active learning approaches. People who are interested can book a place on the course now by logging onto
www.localenterprise.ie/Carlow or contact the Carlow LEO on 059 912 9783 or by email: enterprise@carlowcoco.ie.
WHEN?
November 8th
WHERE?
The venue for the course will be: LEO Carlow, Enterprise House, O’Brien Road, Carlow
COST?
Free of charge
WANT TO KNOW MORE?
Additional info/bios on Karl Hyden and Paddy Ryan below. Both are available for interview. Contact Karl to arrange on 087-6257779. For further information: www.FamilyBusinessUnit.ie or on Facebook: The Family Business Unit Ireland
Who Are We?
Karl Hyden - FBU Ireland
To date, Karl has supported 1,000+ small and medium businesses owners from 27 countries. He has over 27 years of experience in management, supervision, training and development disciplines. Karl works as a Family Business Specialist, business mentor, consultant and master level coach with SME clients in Ireland.
Karl has Masters Degrees in both Human Resource Management and Performance, a primary degree including Interpersonal Communications (Psychology), advanced studies in Organisational Transactional Analysis (Psychology) and qualifications in Mediation and Business Coaching.
He is a Chartered Fellow with the Chartered Institute of Personnel Development (CIPD) a Fellow with the Irish Institute of Training & Development (IITD) and a Member of the International Coach Federation (ICF) and the Institute of Directors (IoD).
In addition to his work with family businesses, Karl has coached, trained and consulted for organisations including: Kellogg’s, Irish Life & Permanent, Diageo Ireland, Molex Ireland, UCC, Carphone Warehouse, Tyco Sensormatic, Irish Examiner, McCarthy Insurances, Skillnets, Bioverda (National Toll Roads), the Department of Social Protection, Solus, ETBs and Local Enterprise Offices (LEOs).
Karl has been working with Succession and other Family Business related issues in Ireland for more than 10 years. He is a Guest Lecturer in Family Business at UCC Business School and lecturer in Coaching on the Ibec/DIT Coaching Diploma programme. Karl has also delivered training and presentations for a number of Local Enterprise Offices and Chambers of Commerce across the country.
From his personal experience of working in his parent's business, Karl is acutely aware of the rewarding and challenging aspects of being both a family member and employee in the Family Business. He is all too familiar with the emotional and financial devastation that can result from blurred boundaries between family and business.
Email: karl@familybusinessunit.ie
Paddy Ryan
