Re: Re-Visit the Idea of Going Into Business "Together" - Hire Them as Employees

That's excellent advice, Dianne.

Bluto stated (quite rightly) what I had assumed...that both legal and accounting advice would be primary regardless of whether you have partners or not.

It's far too easy to let the bookkeeping slide 'temporarily' only to find out, when you need the numbers to make a decision, they're not there for you to reference. Then it's hurry up, pray, and oh, what a headache! Far easier to do things right from the get-go.

That goes double for GOOD legal advice...not necessarily advice from another business person with good knowledge of THEIR situation that may or may not be good advice for yours. Always good to keep in mind.

Sandi Bowman

> Why does there need to be any ownership at all by your sister and
> brother-in-law? Hire them as employees and pay them for their work. You
> can give bonuses for special projects associated with getting ready to
> open based on the skill set they bring to the table. Also, set up job
> descriptions with wages/salaries attached, hire them for a specific job
> and pay each person for the work they do. Use a formal sign-in sheet or
> electronic time system no matter how silly it may seem at first. If you
> don't take these things seriously from the start, you won't be able to get
> them to take it seriously when it counts.

> If everyone is only going to do cleaning that's one thing. However, if one
> person is also going to be doing the marketing, another keeping the books
> and the third handling scheduling, ordering supplies, and other
> operational matters, then pay each person based on their primary job.

> Work out an agreement AHEAD of time as to how long you will have each
> person in the various roles and at what point you will bring in a more
> skilled professional to handle a role (i.e. if you grow to a certain level
> of revenues/employees, handling the financial matters may require a more
> advanced skill set).

> Be sure to set-up an organizational chart and determine how decisions will
> be made. These must be agreed upon before you start the business. With
> family members, it's going to be hard enough to get everyone to stick to
> the agreements, even if they are signed. Don't neglect getting them in
> place.

> If this is your idea and your financial backing, re-visit the idea of
> going into business "together". Hiring them may save you a lot
> of headaches, especially if they have never run a business or don't have
> any P&L (profit and loss) experience.

> Hope this is helpful!