JohnC Btcfcnr
Thomas A Brawor
JmsoO Cooptr
Virgil E Crowtey
Larry C Jtnfcim
Passing Down
the Farm
By Alvi O. Voigt
Penn State Professor
of Agricultural
Econi
liwastoomua
of a coincidenci
to ignore. Withii
two days in tw<
separate publi
cations “famil;
business" wa.
featured. One oi
my regular trade pt
tained a full-page advertisement of
the book “Passing Down the
Farm" by Donald J. Jonovic and
Wayne D. Messick. The price was
W TO HANDLE PRESSURE
V
I-
Use only Gates Hydraulic Assemblies
Authorized Distributor
Wholesale • Retail
Sales • Service • Installations
/
•CMSSOMt
Box 255 A, R.D. #l, N. Shirk Rd.
"P.V.C. WHITE RAIL FENCE"
Perfect For Farm, Home, Recreation Area, Or
Wherever Fence Is Used
2, 3 OR 4 RAIL FENCING
m m wrt w*** J* "SS SSs
* r jmf
3-Rail Fence w/Gates
“Never Need Paint"
P.V.C. MANUFACTURED PRODUCTS
lampposts Picnic Tables Sand Boxes
Yard Pence Hone Pences Gazebos
Race Track Pence Trellis
QUALITY FENCING & SUPPLY, INC.
R.D. #l, Box 428 (717) 354-9760 New Holland, PA 17557
. AnthnriToH Dpqlppc . .
UMBERGER’S of FONTANA G. BENJAMIN MILLER, JR.
Lebanon, PA RouzerviUe, PA 17250
(717) 867-5181 (717) 762-2386
With These Participating
Professors
JackJ Kirkland
Milton E Madison
WiHiamT McSwoony
N lows Moor*
Jamas W Paast
•lair J Smith
AMO Voigt
I I
$24.95 for 210 pages, hard bound.
The book is about growth and pro
fitability in the long term, about
keeping families and farms intact
through well-planned ownership
transition-and it deals with these
issues in realism and honesty. It
tackles questions like: Why are in
laws so hard to get along with? Is
Dad going to retire... or isn’t he?
Where do our heirs find the capital
to buy the farm? How do we take
care of off-farm heirs? Other
books were also advertised; these
were books to help families stay in
business, but not necessarily farm
families. All seem worthwhile,
such as “Beyond Survival" by
Leon A. Danco, a 196-page guide
i
i 1 j
BEILER
HYDRAULICS
(717) 354-6066
for the business owner and his
family to ensure the dream sur
vives beyond the entrepreneur.
This book deals with who’s who
of power, how to manage people
and money, how to gain commit
ment from outside advisers, how
to manage succession and how to
manage estate palnning. Cost
$19.95. “Inside the Family Busi
ness'* is another Danco book. Ban
co is an authority on privately
held businesses. He and his wife
Katy were featured in the Decem
ber 1987 Conference Board
zine “Across the Board." Katy has
authored still another book, “From
the Other Side of the Bed-As a
Woman Looks at Life in the Fami
ly Business;" written for and about
women in family businesses
whether as full working partners,
potential successors, part-time
officers, fictional directors or not
involved at all. Women can be a
major strength or major weakness
of a successful family business.
The Dancos co-founded the
Cleveland-based Center for Fami
ly Business, a national association
for business owners and their fam
ilies. They are often considered the
nation’s leading authorities on
family businesses. Leon is a senior
advisor to the Small Business
The Leader in Hydraulics
ups
New Holland, PA 17557
PVC Picket Fence
Signposts
Dog Cages
Mailbox Posts
HIAWATHA FASTENERS
7 6261 C. TAI r T RD- NCWTHSYIMCUS*. W 11212
y >-rr*/ PHONfc(3l5»4»2-OOM
6th Annual January Sale
50 Ton To Choose From
Purchase Your Bolts and NutSp_
•(Ifl BY THE POUND
'. v ' OPEN TO THE PUBLIC
C *'* w \tv Business Hours: 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Daily sale
Price Per Pound Price
V.«A C Hex Bolts - Washers • • JrrKT .95
Nuts -Carnage Bolts (including SAE fine thread) JkKT gg
Over 6” long Carr&Gr 2 1.35
SAE Vi” thru IW 1-50
Fender Washers 1-50
Lock Washers 1-85
f v Machine Screw Washers #6-#B-#lO 1.85
t h Grade 5 Hex Bolts USS. -IrtSS" 1.20
Grade 5 Hex Bolts SAE 1.65
Grade 8 Hex Bolts USS 2.50
ru Grade 8 Hex Bolts SAE 2.70
i ! Plow Bolts #3 Head Grade 5 .. 2.10
** Qmbb
Plow Bolts - Clipped Head . 2.70
I— —i Hex Lag Screws. 1.65
V/ \J) Woodscrews - Phillips Flat Head 2.25
Sheet Metal Screws 2.70
Machine Screws 2.00
Cotter Pins 3.00
Drywall Screws 2.70
We Stock The Best Supply Of Grade 8 Bolts in Central N.Y.
Coarse Thread and Fine Thread
Administration’s Family Business
Continuity Task Force and a busi
ness professor at John Carroll Uni
versity in Cleveland. He has an AB
in classics and MBA from Har
vard, and a Ph.D. in economics
from Case Western Reserve Uni
versity. Katy has served as the cen
ter’s senior seminar director since
1970, and as a lecturer and consul
tant she specializes in family rela
tionships and the woman’s role in a
family business. In short, they are
well-qualified!
Dancos’ Forte
The Dancos’ forte is treating the
older, successful firm whose pat
riarch is starting to worry about
succession and retirement “What
collapses the business owner’s
dream is that he never thought or
planned on success. If he had con
sidered at age 30 that by age 60
he’d be successful with children
and grandchildren to worry about
he’d have been better off," Danco
has said. And what happens when
that owner must consider child
ren’s spouses as employees, or
stepchildren as employees, his ex
wife as a shareholder, and so on?
Most family-owned business
(farms) come from humble
origins-couples who start out and
remember their days of struggle.
Danco says, “In our experience
smaller family businesses (farms)
are generally more sensitive, and
tend to view their employees as an
extended family. With a relatively
small number of employees and
usually no professional human
resources manager, the owner
becomes a bit of a father figure to
everyone. If he’s concerned and
caring he’ll say, ’Your wife’s not
well? Take the day off, Charlie.’
There’s a sense of obligation tow
ard the nonfamily members who
have helped the business (farm)
succeed. The feeling is; ’You’re a
loyal part of the family. You do a
good job for us. Now how can we
help you?”’
Some Helps
from the Authors
Leon: Estate planning is a new
VEW ITEM
or wir In
r«rmmg, a«tunny, January a, iwo^s
issue. Previously it was left to the
likes of the Rockefellers and other
dynastic families, but now every
one’s conscious that it must be
done. And business (farm) owners
can leave their material wealth to
successors in unbelievably bad
ways. First of all, family members
who aren’t going to work in the
business (on the farm) shouldn’t
own any of it Otherwise, those
who run the company (farm)
might be burdened with demands
from individuals whose goals are
at odds with the firm’s (farm’s)
health and perpetuity. The ulti
mate hope of estate planning is to
ensure the peace, happiness and
prosperity of the family. It should
not mean discord among the inher
itors, but it often does. With estate
planning you must be philosophi
cal before you become technical.
Consider the question of “What is
best for my family when my busi
ness grows beyond me“ before
you think about “How do I beat the
tax laws.” Too often, people
minimize taxes only to build big
ger bullets for their children to use
against each other. Katy: Also, you
must communicate your estate
plan to your kids. Explain that the
business (farm) goes to Joe,
because he’s devoted his life to
working on it; the non-business
possessions go to Sue, who hasn’t
been involved in the business
(farm). Do it today, so there’s no
misunderstanding tomorrow.
Sometimes, love is best expressed
by not giving children equal share
s of something they would wind up
fighting over in the future. I
believe that we must start explain
ing early in the lives of our child
ren that ’fair’ is what mon and dad
want to do with their estate (farm).
What is equal is our love.
And? Check your library for
some of these books-or better yet,
buy a couple for your personal
reference. This winter, when
chores take up less of your time,
do a little reading and thinking
about an important subject, pass
ing down the farm.