PEOPLE SMARTS: Pass the Torch, But Don't Let It Go Out

The stage was set. The company’s founder was ready to remove himself from the business and pass it on to his son. The son had been working in the business for some time and both felt comfortable about the transition.
 
The business had grown slowly but steadily over 25 years. It maintained a stellar reputation among its commercial and residential customers, many of whom relied on it for unique landscape installations no one else would touch.
 
The father had developed many solid, long-term customer relationships, and word-of-mouth referrals generated a steady stream of  profitable new business leads for the company.
 
Many of the crew members had been employed with the company for a long time. The father retained them, even in hard times, because they were skilled at their work and cared about his customers.
 
“It’s yours now,” he told to his son.
 
Things changed shortly after the father’s departure. The  son forgot  what it was that made the landscape company so successful.
 
He converted 4 acres of their property  into a nursery operation. He looked at the equipment maintenance and repair bills and made a snap decision to take it all in-house.
 
Before long, a 4,000-square-foot maintenance facility was erected on a freshly poured concrete slab.
 
A mechanic was hired and tools and equipment were purchased. Vehicles started stacking up in front of the shop awaiting parts and maintenance, and crews were relegated to inconsequential busy work.
 
Meanwhile, accounts payable started piling up with paperwork while accounts receivable stayed flat.
 
The father began receiving complaints from his old customers. He was stunned since this was the first time he ever remembered getting these calls. Worse yet, they were phoning him and not his son. A quick visit to the yard told him everything he needed to know about the situation. The place was a mess and his son was nowhere to be found.
 
This story doesn’t end here. It actually gets worse.
 
The company’s customer base began to deteriorate. New upscale sub-divisions were being built in another part of town. The company had been out flanked by their competition and was now in jeopardy of losing its market presence. The lack of focus and entry into other ventures had hurt the landscape company’s  financial strength.
 
The father learned a bitter lesson that his son was more interested in doing the work than running the business. When he should have been enjoying life, the father was involved with saving the business.
 
This little narrative is not a work of fiction. Unfortunately, it’s true. Today, the company is in turnaround mode. Sadly, the loss of 25 years of momentum is the toughest blow to the company. Now it is forced to prove itself all over again, but this time from a diminished financial base.
 
Drive into the yard today and you will see a new general manager in charge. The GM spends a lot of time biting his nails and worrying about the company’s day-to-day details.
 
The son…well, on most days he pulls into the yard at 10 a.m. in his brand new pick-up. Some things never change.
 
The father, well, he still comes in a couple of days a week and plays a little golf here and there.
 
He bites his nails, too.

Larry Fish is president of GreenSearch, a human resource consulting organization. He can be reached at 888/375-7787, peoplesmarts@gie.net
or via www.greensearch.com. PeopleSmarts® is a registered trademark of GreenSearch.