Joseph's Coat: A Household Workplace Story

Throughout my school years, I carried out within the musical written by Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber, Joseph and the Superb Technicolor Dream Coat. My function as one of many 12 brothers (Levi) saved me within the motion, and even allowed me to croon of the travails of our presumed lifeless brother, Joseph. Effectively, these school and performing days are gone, however as Head of Household Workplace Companies for Wells Fargo‘s Multi Household Workplace, Abbot Downing, I just lately discovered myself dreaming of some key household workplace ideas that exist on this colourful story.

The story begins in Canaan with Joseph because the favored son of Jacob.  Household dynamics points have been rapidly evident as the daddy demonstrated favoritism, and Joseph alienated his brothers by sharing his grandiose goals.  Joseph, ever oblivious in these youthful years, discovered himself the sufferer of his brother’s envy and offered away to a caravan of camel merchants.

Joseph landed in Egypt as a slave and earned his strategy to the CEO function of the Potiphar Household Workplace. Potiphar served in Pharaoh’s court docket as captain of the guard and was so impressed with Joseph’s enterprise acumen, that he granted Joseph authority over all his possessions.  Potiphar solely involved himself with wine and meals.  Whereas Joseph excelled at asset-management and grew the Potiphar portfolio yr after yr, his household workplace profession was minimize brief by a distinction of opinion with the matriarch.

Potiphar would hear none of it, and forged Joseph away to the Egyptian dungeon.  I do know if Joseph had enlisted Abbot Downing’s Institute of Household Tradition to craft a governance technique to outline roles, expectations, and limits, he may have averted the ire of his employer and ensuing termination.

Whereas fraternizing with the jail guards, Joseph should have been reflecting on his pitfalls (pun meant).  Joseph’s second likelihood to run a Household Workplace took place when Pharaoh was unsettled by some recurring goals.  When summoned to Pharaoh’s court docket, Joseph listened intently and supplied sensible counsel.  Pharaoh was taken with Joseph’s knowledge and appointed him to go the Pharaoh Household Workplace.  Immediately, Joseph was quantity two in all of the land.

Joseph had discovered from his errors.  He began with a thoughtfully outlined function, city plan and funds. He led the nation by years of a lot whereas amassing property and buyers.  When occasions turned, the preparations have been enough to supply not just for Pharaoh’s area, but in addition determined, repentant households from Canaan.   Regardless of troublesome occasions, the Pharaoh and Joseph got here out on prime!

Whereas it might be a stretch to name a slave donning favor a household workplace, the parallels are colourful.  Joseph ought to have made it a precedence to think about these well-established household workplace tenets:

Governance – Written insurance policies which give the construction for determination making.  They need to replicate the household’s values and be developed by familial consensus. Governance could be an efficient strategy to navigate wealth’s complexities.
Mission – Clear statements offering readability of objective to unite relations and the household workplace staff.  Could also be based mostly on the household’s historical past or upon values of the present era. For wealth and legacy to transcend generations, the household and household workplace staff want to know the overarching objectives they hope to realize.
Schooling – Each member of the household has a task to play, albeit beneficiary, trustee, board member, or mother or father.  Creating future heirs and leaders begins at an early age and may proceed all through everybody’s lifetimes.  The household workplace staff can serve the household nicely as a useful resource, coach, mentor, facilitator, and so forth.

Though household places of work are as various as the colours of the storied coat, governance, mission and schooling are foundational to keep away from a constricted end result and guaranteeing that the household can thrive regardless of feast or famine.

Joe Freeman is Head of Household Workplace Companies for Wells Fargo‘s Multi Household Workplace, Abbot Downing.