How We Can Help

Every small business I have ever worked with or had any involvement with has had internal issues that are rarely or never have been dealt with.  As a Mediator & business coach I have worked with many small businesses addressing work place disputes and issues of all kinds.  I can help you get through some of your roughest workplace disputes.

 

What’s in the mind of my business mediation client?

 

1.  I am in dispute with my business partner over responsibilities, compensation, overhead, staffing, and productivity and can’t communicate or agree on anything with them. The partnership could be in jeopardy of coming apart. I need help someone who can get us communicating in a civil manor.

 

2. There’s been a breakdown in trust in my organization between me and my staff and it’s causing all kinds of problems in my business.3. I’m in dispute with one of my clients and am in need of help before I end up in court. There is great motivation for many of you to find a way to resolve these issues.

 

This is how you provide for your family now; this is how you plan to retire the longer you avoid dealing with this the worse it gets. Avoidance is the strategy chosen by most but it’s the last position you want to take. My step-by-step method of dealing with these issues can help you put this behind you and get back to doing what you love and providing for your family's.

Family businesses can be my favorite clients to work with. I grew up in a family business and have a great understanding of the problems that arise and know well how to mediate them. Family business has different rules and priorities by which they function. 

 

What’s in the mind of my family business client?

 

How do I address these issues without destroying my family and the business?  How do I address the issues when we can’t even speak to one another without it going bad? These issues can come at any stage of business but mostly arise when it comes time for succession planning. Conflict between children and parent or child and child or both. This dynamic creates terrible stress for all involved and makes it even harder on staff which always effects business as a whole.

 

Dealing with these issues while you’re here and healthy is so much better than dealing with this when you are disabled or no longer with us. I have a step-by-step process that helps me get underneath these problems in a way that allows for dialog and movement forward and most times total resolution.

 There’s been a large uptick in estate litigation over the past 10 years. Children have been suing their parents’ estates in probate matters. The high cost of litigation just doesn’t make sense for most of these families especially if their estates are not high net worth.

 

The courts have also been consolidated and that has caused a lot of distress for the litigating attorneys. They tell me often that the judges hearing these cases simply don’t know the probate laws and many times judge on what they think is fair as appose to what the law says. So, it’s very hard for the attorney to know if he can win or defend a good decision for his or her client.  

 

Mediation is such a great alternative to litigation and I see as one of greatest opportunities for everyone involved.

 

What’s in the mind of a family member who is in dispute with their parents ‘Wills or estate plans?

 

How do I get control of my estate? Why is my brother or sister taking their time in closing out my parents’ estate? Why is my brother or sister trying to control everything? My father is in a care facility and he’s not well cared for and my brother who is in charge doesn’t want to discuss it with me.   

 

It is usually the child who has a trustee who is managing the estate or them in a way they don’t like. It could be a brother or sister who are acting inappropriately or being controlling with finances. Control is always an issue and less and less are people willing to live with someone having control over their lives. The way a trust or a will is written dictates how things are to be done but of course they are always subject to interpretation. The human condition intervenes and that’s where it all goes astray.  Navigating these agreements along with multiple personalities can be tricky.

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These matters have to be handled firmly but with the greatest care and sensitivity in order for all parties to come to resolution.  Estate attorneys refer these family disputes to me not to resolve the legal issues but to find ways for all who are involved to communicate with each other and find resolution.

There so many ways you can help your business and the quality of your life within your business. I have seen so much opportunity lost in businesses in places employers don’t want to look. Looking inside of your business and at yourself and your staff and culture to solve the problems in your business isn’t easy but it is definitely worth it.

 

This is where 95% of the problems lie and where you can resolve many of your core business issues. Businesses will dance around or avoid these issues and end up having a revolving door with employee turnover and a thousand reasons why they are in the tough place with poor results.

 

What's in the mind of a client that is struggling  in their business?

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Many people believe they should be able to get through this stuff by themselves but most times they can’t which is how they got here in the first place.  Getting help outside of your organization is key to addressing these issues.  These issues may be daunting to you but I deal with them every day and look forward to it. I work from the top down and the bottom up.

 

I counsel and coached hundreds of businesses and thousands of professionals. For some clients the process is simply about working on communication and boundary issues. With others it’s a more involved the problems run much deeper where I actually get into the trenches with them until they can reach velocity on their own.  

 

The results can change the whole outlook on your business your personal relationship with it and most definitely the bottom line.