Importance of a business partner

[Cornish Steve]

I am very fortunate to work with a great business partner called Caroline. She's a wonderful lady, a great communicator, and a tremendous asset to our business. I have no doubt that I would fail in this venture without her.

We met in south Georgia yesterday to visit some potential customers and to review our progress. Later in the day, I called someone to offer him the position of VP-Technology for our company. He asked me what role I play and what role Caroline plays. I really struggled to answer, and here's why.

I am the visionary, the leader with passion and conviction, the ideas man if you will. Caroline brings me down to earth. With considerable grace and patience, she forces me to think through realities. So, we both lead the company and have complementary skill sets. My wife put it best last night. While she provides the support and common sense I need within the home, Caroline fulfills the same role for our business.

The point is that I am nothing in business without my partner, and she would be nothing without me. It's rather like the old argument for braces over a belt, or about multiple strands making a strong rope: two are much stronger than one. If one fails, the other is there to pick him up.

Reading through messages posted to this forum, I get the feeling that most people went into business alone. Am I alone in needing a strong and practical business partner?

 

[Coding Monkey]

You can have this advice and pratical mind from those who don't own a part of your business. I will listen to everything the designer says is right for the project, and have only had to make small adjustments thereafter, but ultimately if I disagree, that's it - they have to change it. Through working with very talented designers, copywriters, and web marketing specialists, you gain a firm understanding of what works within the industry. Then there are those external to the industry who give you a good kicking, such as my dad who was kind enough to tell me what an idiot I was being over certain decisions.

 

[creacom]

Your not alone Steve. I have a business partner too.

For us it wasnt a case of one of us having the idea and then trying to find a partner to start it up with. I knew her before this and eventually we saw that our professional aims were the same. We both wanted to have our own company and looked at our individual strengths and weaknesses.

Its funny because for some things we are like chalk and cheese. But thats good because sometimes you need that. For example she does most of the admin while I do the majority of the customer relations. It was never set out like that but we just followed our natural talents. Our designs and creative talents are often similar too.

I couldnt imagine myself starting up a business and then looking for someone to be a partner in it. This company was built by both of us from the very start so its not the same.

Everything has worked out very well and Im happy to say that we have both found the ideal creative and business partnership.

Jacqui

 

[Cornish Steve]

Likewise, we started this thing together. We've worked together every step along the way. Caroline was on my MBA team, so each learned early on how the other works under pressure. It was an excellent proving ground.

 

[Plastics Dave]

Hello All.
I have a partner also, 50 / 50 all the way down the line, It worked for a long time with me being the wayward child with the ideas and the drive and him being the steadying influence. Then...I was working more hours than he was, carrying more of the load, taking all of the decisions etc etc because we had outgrown his ability, he is still a nice friendly easygoing bloke but the customers have lost confidence in him and I still have to keep the business going. I had serious phsycological issues with this for some considerable time and he simply left me to get on with it. A couple of years ago we changed from a partnership to a limited company, we are still 50 / 50 but now I am paid to be the managing director of the company and I have recompense for my efforts..It is surprising how much of the invisible pressures a little bit of extra cash relievs, I no longer feel bad about being the one that does all of the "managing". I would never again go into a 50 / 50 partnership and would never reccomend one, I still have to face the time when one of us decides to retire, this will force the hand of the other one and could ultimately destroy what is a successful business. I am looking into succesion planning but there is no light at the end of the tunnel.
Regards to all.
Dave

 

[D & J BOOKKEEPING SER]

HI THERE DAVE

i know what you are talking about having a 50/ 50 business partner is definately no good im a bookkeeper working from home and i have had several business coming to me with potential threat of closing down because of other business partners wants to full out they didnt have their finances sorted out i.e spending over their budget

no bookkeeping was done for three or four years they was just in a right mess


pm me if you want to talk further

 

[Kate]

I think the key is to go into any partnership with your eyes open and be aware that although you're getting on now, think about what you might be capable of when you're not.

All the advice I've had is that it's not money that usually proves the breaking point, it's who does what and how work is divided up.

I'm in a partnership that I came into second - however before I proposed going in, I was already providing a sounding board on business issues and we both knew that our skills were complimentary. We spent a long time going through what our expectations were and have a contract which aims to set out a guide line for exit for both of us - one of us having had previous experience of this going wrong!

It's early days - 7 months in, but I don't feel any inequality at the moment, and we make a point of sitting down to have a strategy/direction meeting every couple of months to try to flag up any inequalities or problems.

You never know what will happen in the future but most of it can be sorted out by talking as early and as honestly as possible.

 

[creacom]

Another point to remember that even if the person you are going into business is your best friend.....get a partnership agreement drawn up from the start.

Jacqui

 

[Deleted member 3454]

Although I run my business on my own, my husband is often involved in major decision-making or where larger sums of money are being spent. I can be quite impulsive and my husband is a lot more down to earth.

 

[Dread]

A while ago i met a guy that came to me with a partnership offer. He was looking to go into my area of business and his area of business would compliment mine well, so it would make sense if we worked together.

After getting to know the guy i really do get on well with him and am feeling good about our business partnership as he has a lot of extra skills that i lack at such as people skills and management and i prefer just to sit and code all day. I can see him being a very strong asset to me, we have verbally agreed that he'll be coming in under my company as my brand is more established and where more of the money is.

He'll technically be under me, as an employee, but he'll taking on a role that requires him to be my boss, setting me tasks etc and generally be running the business which is what i want him to do as i know he'll be better at it than i am. From my perspective he'll be my business partner and we'll be splitting the money 50/50 but when it comes to the crunch i'll have the final say.

 

[Cornish Steve]

We decided from day one not to have a 50/50 agreement. We discussed it carefully and came up with a 55/45 agreement. This means that, if ever we have a disagreement (which has yet to happen), one person has the authority to make a final decision.

I agree with members who suggest a formal written agreement is in order. Partnerships cannot be built on friendships or informal rules. When the pressure is on, we need something to fall back on. A formal agreement can save friendships and not destroy them.

 

[Brian McIntosh]

I agree with Lynn at Coxadmin. I'm a sole trader and, although not a "partner" in the business sense, my wife takes on the role of partner and keeps my feet on the ground when I start to get carried away with another idea and picking me up when things aren't going to plan. I find it's great having someone on the outside looking in and telling me what I'm doing wrong and sometimes when I'm doing right.

 

[Aspire]

My business partner is an ex boss and comes from the industry (though we operate in slightly different areas) I agree we both bring a balance to the table and sometimes a reassurance from decisions that are made knowing that we both would have gone in the same direction.

Could i have done it without him? probably yes but life would be very different to how it is now.