Wednesday, 16 February 2022
We talk a lot about why being a family business matters to us. We’re not just owned by a family, we have several different family ‘units’ all under our roof. Let’s be honest, this could be a disaster! But it does work for us – so we thought we’d give an honest account of the benefits and pitfalls of family members working together.
There is a difference between the family that own and manage a business and employing family units. As owner-operators our family have installed a strong sense of community across the business for more than 45 years.
We’ve worked hard to recruit people whose values reflect our own, this means we have a similar outlook on life and what matters. We’re proud of the fact that we’ve now got five different family units under our roof! Owain Davies, our MD:
“Our team are grafters. We’re a tight unit with high standards. We work hard and support each other through good times and bad. Some staff have been here decades so it really does feel like a family unit with a mix of wise elders and keen youngsters!”
There are few people more organised than Rob, the manager of our storeroom, but his wife Sharon could probably give him a run for his money in terms of cleanliness and attention to detail!
Whilst we are always keen for employees to put family members forward for vacancies we’re careful to make sure that we get the right fit. Most family members work in different areas of the business and don’t work side-by-side with their nearest and dearest all day. Having a relation in another department can help an employee get a broader picture of the business and how it operates. Hannah Green looks after business development and customer accounts, her husband Jody joined the team last year:
“I definitely have a better understanding of the challenges people on the shop floor face, since my husband Jody joined the team.”
When a family member joins the business you already work in, it’s a gamble. If they mess it up they mess it up for everybody! But in our experience that very rarely happens. In fact the opposite is true. The new recruit is often mindful of the existing relationship their family member has with the employer. To such an extent they work extra hard to prove the investment in them is a good one. We’ve put our trust in them and they pay us back with hard work and loyalty. Josh Element is our production controller, his brother-in-law Steve works on the paintline:
“I was a bit nervous about working with family, but I’d known Steve for many years and had no doubts he’d be a great asset to the team. He has a positive can-do attitude, which certainly hasn’t gone unnoticed here.”
Like any responsible employer, we try and support our team through good times and bad. If they’re struggling we want to know about it and if we can help, we will. Happy employees make better workers.
“When Jody joined the business it was life-changing for our family. Before he was on the road a lot. Now we have more quality time together. We can both pick our son up from school. We can eat dinner together, it’s given us a new way of living”
When vacancies come up, we’ll always look to our own team first for recommendations. They know what we need more than anyone else, so who better to suggest good candidates to help the business grow? Brothers Jason and Wayne are soon to be joined by Wayne’s son, who will be starting on the shop floor in the next few weeks.
Who knows what our team will look like in years to come, but we hope that Amcanu continues to be a place where families feel welcomed and supported.
