It’s Not Adoption

I spent some time this week with a client who was implementing his first-ever layoff. He has been in business for over 17 years, and has become very close with many of his employees. Some were friends before they were hired. Others have become friends over the years of working together.

When the term “layoff” is heard, 99% of the world thinks about the impact on the downsized employee. That’s understandable, but I think about the other 1%, the entrepreneurs who feel like their employees are family, and that they are failing in their obligation to them.

Small business owners are generally a self-abusive bunch. They frequently work longer hours than any of their employees (especially Tweeners- see 3/22.) They almost never compensate themselves sufficently for their investment or risk in the company, and usually take the first hit when cash flow is tight. Yet they frequently feel an obligation to sacrifice their own welfare in a futile attempt to save employees for whom they simply don’t have enough work.

As a business owner, you have an obligation to all of your employees. The long-term well being of your company, and their livelihood, depends on your commitment to keeping the business healthy and profitable. Like the captain of a ship, or a physician in a MASH unit, the burden of leadership sometimes entails making tough decisions.

Family members receive unconditional love. As responsible fathers and husbands, or mothers and wives, we are conditioned to stand beside out loved ones regardless of the cost. As business owners we make decisions, mete out discipline and rewards, and feel obligated to repay respect and loyalty. At times, it feels a lot like we’ve adopted an extended family.

Business is not family, however. Regardless of the “family atmosphere” in a company, employees still leave you when there is a conflict with their “real” family. Whether it is a transferred spouse, or just the opportunity to bring home a bigger paycheck, employees rightfully put their family’s interests ahead of their job.

If an employee suspects that you are sacrificing his future in an attempt to avoid the pain of a difficult decision, he has every right to find another employer who takes ownership responsibility more seriously. In the long run, that’s the more secure path for his family.

In the long run, you have to run a business in a way that is best for your real family. In your company you are the boss, not the parent.