Posting by:  Joel Susco
Date: April 19, 2010

Have you ever heard someone say, “I would love to be a fly on the wall and just see what goes on at my business while I am not there?”  I am certain many business owners feel that way.  They would like to know just how their employees truly feel and act, while the boss is away.  I recently watched a new reality series called “Undercover Boss,” and thought this was a great way for the owner of a business to work, incognito shoulder-to-shoulder with his or her employees to see what goes on and what employees have to say about their business. What better way to obtain honest, nothing held back, input from those that you trust with your business.  This could possibly be a double-edged sword, however, as you may found out some things about your business that you wish you never had.

The Undercover Premise – How the Boss Blends In

“Undercover Boss” is a reality series that follows high ranking corporate executives as they slip anonymously into their own company as an entry-level employee. Each week, a different executive will leave the comfort of their corner office, alter their appearance and assume an alias, for an undercover mission to examine the inner workings of their corporation. This fictitious employee spends about a week working in various areas of the business and sometimes at different locations.  While working alongside their employees, they will learn about themselves, the effects their decisions have on others, where the problems are within their organization, the perception of their company and discover the unsung champions of their work force.  In certain cases, hilarity often ensues as the boss demonstrates first-day mistakes at the tasks that his employees typically handle perfectly, without a thought. Many times the undercover boss will talk with each employee to learn more about the employee, their personal situation and their perception of the job. In the episode I watched, the boss was incredibly touched by the challenges faced by his working class employees, as some had even revealed difficult life circumstances.  The boss learned some valuable and emotional lessons about their employees.  He observed how his employees treated his business as their own. 

Posting by:  Geoff Brown
Date: April 5, 2010

Spring is here in Washington, DC and that means it time for the famous cherry blossoms.  I only bring it up as this is probably the best weather we’ve had for the cherry trees in a good ten years, with four perfect spring days at the height of the blossoms.  So, if you’re in the DC area, this is a good year to try to try to see them, along with throngs of other folks.

I was talking with a friend of mine the other day whose family business is in real estate.  It’s just becoming a third generation company as he integrates both his son and daughter into the business.  He sounded very excited about the prospect of working with his children. 

Posting by:  Debra Andrews
Date: March 26, 2010

If we weren’t talking about family businesses in this blog, and instead were just focused on businesses in general, this same topic could be approached – generational differences in the workplace.  But since we do focus on family businesses, the issue has an added dimension.

Let’s take the maternity leave issue as an example.  In the first generation of “Smith Family Widgets,” the matriarch of the family 50 years ago may have done books for the business while raising the children, but wasn’t much seen front and center in the public eye.  Then 25 years later, Daughter #1 of the second generation, after growing up working part-time and summers for the business, takes a prominent role.  She works 60-70 hours a week, pausing to give birth a few times but returning to work at virtually the same pace.  Now in 2010, Granddaughter #1 of the third generation is grown up, and sees nothing wrong with taking an extended maternity leave for the birth of her child, and is asking the family business to consider flex-time to accommodate her changing lifestyle.