What Would a Wise Woman Do? by Laura Steward Atchison

Author:Laura Steward Atchison
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Morgan James Publishing
Published: 2013-11-11T16:00:00+00:00

TO PARTNER OR NOT TO PARTNER

One of the biggest staff additions you can add to your business is a partner. A partner typically owns a piece of the business versus just getting a salary. A few times during my ownership of Guardian Angel Computers, I decided I needed to bring on a partner.

Go ahead. Ask me what I asked myself at the time. Absolutely nothing! Ask me if they all worked out. No. Did some of them? Yes. Why did some work and not the others? Dumb luck and asking myself better questions.

Remember earlier I said I did not do a lot of planning or thinking about where I wanted the business to go after I founded it? Well, all but one of my decisions to partner was another reflection of that lack of clarity. When I brought on my first partner, and then subsequently dissolved the partnership, I thought it would be better to bring on someone as a partner versus an employee, because that would make this person feel more vested in the success of the company.

There is an old saying, “There you go, thinking again.” I never understood why that was a putdown versus kudos to someone. Thinking is good, right? Right. But only when you do so from a conscious place versus from an unconscious place. I really did not need a partner.

What I needed to understand was what I wanted for the business and for me—the type of people I needed on the team, what my expectations for each person were, and what things I was willing to give up controlling in order to move the company forward. That last one probably has you going, “Huh?”

Bringing on a partner or even an employee meant I was going to have to give up some control over aspects of the company. This happens when you add people, because you are no longer doing all the work yourself. If it is an employee you are adding, he or she is not your clone, so this person will do things differently. If it is a partner, he or she will have ownership and feel entitled to add a personal imprint.

If you are not willing to let that happen, it’s better to just stay on your own until you know what it is you truly want for the business and your life. You can hire a general manager, chief operating officer, or other operational staff without giving them an ownership stake. You can create a framework for your business and require others to follow that framework, but be open to ideas they may have that can improve things beyond where you saw them going.

Whether you add an employee or a partner, make sure you have a great attorney who can draft employment and partnership agreements including clauses related to how the relationship will end, and what is required of each party in the event of a separation. Having those agreements didn’t smooth out all the interpersonal issues that arose when

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