The Pros and Cons of Hiring Family Members

It’s a question as old as business itself: should you, or should you not, hire family members to work for your company? Both statistical analysis and anecdotal evidence show that the merits of such a decision will ultimately depend upon individual factors unique to your business. There are some companies for which hiring in the family encourages: productivity, loyalty, and a sense of belonging–and there are some companies where the result is quite the opposite.

In this article, we will try to help you analyze the potential pros and cons of such a decision–but, once again, there is no clear-cut answer. You will have to decide for yourself if you believe that hiring family will lead to success for your company and for your family member(s).

The Pros:
– Family members tend to be loyal and trustworthy.
– You will know the strong and weak points of your family members very well, and can thus place them in a position to succeed.
– Working with family members can be an uplifting and enjoyable experience.
– Family may go above and beyond the regular duties of an employee in order to ensure that you succeed.

The Cons:
– If your family approaches the job with the wrong attitude, they may think they are entitled to ignore rules or break company policy simply because you are in charge.
– On a related note, your family may approach the job with too laid-back an attitude.
– Other employees may think that your family members are being shown favoritism, which can cause internal strife.
– Similarly, your family may actually expect favoritism!
– Finally, if you do need to hold a family member responsible for poor performance, this could strain your personal relationship.

In Summary
Will the pros of hiring a family member outweigh the cons? The real answer to this question is that it depends on your management skills and the outlook and professionalism of your family members. If the list of pros sounds like it will apply in your circumstances more than the list of cons, than the best decision may be to hire family. However, if the list of cons sounds more likely to occur, than you are probably best off letting your family know that you prefer to keep your professional and personal lives separate.

Fore more advice on HR conundrums and other leadership issues frequently encountered by small and medium-sized business owners, visit Precise Payroll online today.