Dreary would have been a nice description for the late November day. I was, admittedly, as ready to get home for the Thanksgiving holiday as the rest of the people gathered in the local bank’s conference room.
I thought we were headed in that direction, until during the homestretch of a two-day strategy session with a family farm board and key employees, 35-year-old cousin Justin finally spoke up. His name had just been added as third in line for CEO.
“I don’t even want that job — ever,” he said. “I’m not even sure I want to manage the operations at all. I told my wife I’m thinking about renewing my teaching certificate.”
That threw a wrench in the idea of finishing on time ...
IDENTIFY THE DISCONNECT
While we weren’t able to come together that day, I agreed to work with Justin and the rest of the board on an ongo-ing basis. The first order of business was to figure out what caused the disconnect between what Justin wanted (or didn’t) and what the rest of the board had planned for him.
Over time, I learned Justin had been hired on part time during the summer months to fill in. As the operation expanded, Justin’s uncle, Stan, the farm’s leader at the time, assumed Justin would rather run the operations than become a teacher. So, he offered, or, as it turns out, pushed Justin into taking the farm job.
Thinking it would be similar to what he’d been doing over the summers, Justin agreed rather than having to face his Uncle Stan. By the time I worked with the group, Justin knew his uncle had a succession plan in mind that included Stan’s son taking the lead, then Justin’s sister, and then him, in case of emergency.
But he didn’t want any part of that. The time he dreaded had come at the meeting. He had to speak up.
PREVENT CONFLICT
Ultimately, in the case of Justin and his family, what was missing from the start was a conversation. What really hap-pened was an assumption, and people felt uncomfortable speaking up. That consternation could have been prevented with a clear job description.
Maybe knowing what tasks Uncle Stan expected for the role would have forced Justin to have the nerve to speak up sooner. It also might have demonstrated to Uncle Stan what skills were really needed for the job. Maybe he could have divided it up differently and found the right person — someone who did want the responsibility.
This winter, dive into these topics. Don’t assume; have the talk.
Sarah Beth Aubrey’s mission is to enhance success and profitability in agriculture by building capacity in people. She provides executive coaching as well as peer group and board facilitation.
