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Yes, Virginia, there is financing available

In these trying times, there are several steps family business owners can take to find a stable lender and to ensure they obtain the financing they seek.

By Glenn Gray

Despite the barrage of recession-related doom-and-gloom stories, financing is still available for family-owned businesses. Many healthy banks are hungry to lend to the right clients. Even in these trying times, business owners who do their homework can find a stable lender that understands their industry.

Leaders of family firms should be aware, though, that prospective lenders know the family dynamic can pre-sent a unique set of challenges. When making a decision about financing, lenders will do more than just review the company’s past achievements. They will also look for evidence that a solid succession plan is in place, and that the … Read more

Value proposition

Have you created a list of company values and put them into writing? If your company values were created by a previous generation, have you assessed whether they need to be revised?

Some business owners insist that developing company values is a waste of precious time and brainpower. Others come up with a list of values -- usually because a consultant told them to do it, or they read a book that said it was something they needed to do -- and promptly forget about it. The values are listed in writing, but no one from the company ever looks at the … Read more