Better Farming - October 2016

15 / 72

Better Farming October 2016 Farm News First > 15
forward,” said Brittain. “Things are different now than they
were. I might have an idea that’s different from Dad. But it’s
more like a partnership, and he’ll usually let me go with my
ideas.”
Fast said the older generation’s transition from parent
and child relationship to partners is one of the biggest
hurdles family farm transitions face.
“You’ve seen them (the children) in diapers. When they
were 13, they started saying ‘no.’ When they were 18, they
started saying other things. It’s called ‘individuation,’ and
it’s a huge stage in life, and it’s a challenge for all of us,” Fast
explained.
John Fast, consultant and founder of the Centre for
Family Business in Waterloo, said there are differenc-
es between family-run businesses and other business-
es. And there are things other businesses do that
family businesses typically don’t.
1. Performance reviews
“Performance reviews are rare in any family busi-
ness, almost to the point of being non-existent,” Fast
said. But performance reviews should be used in
family businesses as well. How else can there be
development?
“Look at it this way. If they were out on their own,
they’d have bosses and regular performance reviews,
and they’d be developing,” he said.
2. Personality profiles
Personality profiles are a management tool, said Fast.
“Any HR Professional worth his salt will do these,”
he said. And farm managers should have these in
their management toolbox.
“They are the best way to identify differences and
strengths and tendencies in people,” he said.
Knowing whether a person is an extrovert or an
introvert, for example, could change how the person
should be managed.
3. Constant communication
The biggest difference between a family business and
any other kind of business is the potential overlap
between family challenges and business challenges.
Fast points out that about half of second-generation
farmers working on the family farm are dissatisfied
with their job, and that’s mainly due to family conflict.
“The business and family juggle for affection, love
and all the warm-and-fuzzies. But you also have to
make money,” he said.
Communication needs to be on-going and honest. BF
Three things successful
family farm businesses
should be doing
“What can happen is the young people get trapped.
From the founder’s point of view, you want a partner-
ship. You may continue to control the finances, but do
you want to partner with a child? You’ve gone from
wiping their butts to having them as a legitimate
business partner.”
Family dynamics in succession are a key part of the
formal education agriculture students at the University
of Guelph Ridgetown Campus can expect.
“We recognize there’s a human side to it,” said Ken
McEwan, campus director. “Handling other siblings, for
example. It’s complex and many struggle with it.”
As well, students in the two-year Associate Diplo-
ma in Agriculture program are given a major project
in their fourth semester about building a business
case for the family farm they may be going back to.
“We realize that within a few years of graduating,
they may be operating a farm worth tens of millions,
generating one or two million in revenue per year,”
McEwan said.
“It offers a potentially tremendous reward to take
over a viable, competitive business that you can take to
the next level.”
For Carol Brittain, there is another kind of reward.
“We’re just happy Gary had an interest in the farm to
continue the family legacy,” she said. BF
GENERATIONALTRANSITION