Pass the Baton
Last night I had the privilege to speak to more than 300 families in Langhorne, Pennsylvania. The topic? Family businesses.
As a member of the Cathy family I’ve had a first hand education about what it takes to build a multi-generation family business. And it hasn’t been easy. In fact, more than 70% of family-run businesses don’t make it from one generation to the next. Why?
There are lots of theories, but ultimately the biggest challenge is the baton hand off, that critical season when the previous generation hands off the opportunity to the next generation.
I interviewed an Olympic coach for insight into baton hand offs. I’m trying to be an anomaly, a generation that receives the baton from my father Truett and hands it off to a future generation of Cathys.
The coach told me it was paramount to have the two runners, or generations in this case, in synch. To make sure that in every way possible they were in synch and matched stride for stride. Arms and legs and hearts and minds have to be going in the same direction. He said that in a good hand off, in a perfect hand off, you don’t even know it occurred. It’s seamless, it’s a non event, there’s not a change in direction or tempo.
It’s the same in business. When things are in synch, the opportunity to lead a company is given to the next generation. All the knowledge and expertise gained from a father or a mother is passed on without missing a beat. Nothing learned over the years is lost. The Nordstrom family did it this way. Enterprise did it this way. You can do it too.
If you run in synch.
If you make family a priority both in the business and outside the business.
If you pass the baton.
This post is categorized Love
Great Blog Dan. I enjoy hearing from you and your fathers heart. It is such a great blessing to be able to work for such a phenomenal company. I admire your dad and the entire Cathy family commitment to doing what is right. In watching the video on the new Spicy my favorite part was where the executive committee was ready to make the call to roll out and Truett said wait…go back to the drawing board…and in the end how that decision was the right one, finding a way to reduce the number of Henny’s required. What I gained from that was it goes to show that sometimes we need to take a step back from what we want right now and look at the big picture and come up with alternatives. Thanks to you and your dad for great life lessons!
dan,
i am a Christian business woman and i highly motivated by your words and
‘tweets’. i think i gain one nugget every time i read your blog. now that makes it worth it, doesn’t it. i am in the leadership business and my motto is protect the truth, so your lessons hit home. thanks and keep it up. bc
That is such an excellent analogy – aptly applied in your case!
Although I am not directly involved in an actual business {only second hand, through my husband}, I AM in the “business” of shepherding and disciplining little hearts, as they grow in to the next generation of salt and light. Your paragraph summarizing the coach’s advice so succinctly describes what my husband and I are striving to accomplish with his vision for our family as we prepare our children to rise to God’s calling for their lives. Thank you for sharing this advice!
Wonderful post!