SME with ill owner -advice please
Discussion
Have worked for a SME in a very tight segment for nearly 4 years now. Started on lowish wages with regualr uplifts due to gaining experience.
Currently now lead engineer, responsible for liasing with Ops manager and dishing out work and routings for 3 other engineers.
Very small firm, run by a very odd and paranoid character.
This chap was diagnosed with Leukemia of some sort in Jan.
He has pretty much only been in for about 12 days since then, and has nothing positive to say about anyone, despite us keeping the lights on all year.
We are now grinding to a halt as he sacked the sales rep very early on in the year.
The Ops manager can sell, but needs soemone manning the phones to allow him to visit clients.
This isnt happenig, and we are seriously runnign out of work......
Sales are below norm and IM concerned about the future...
Jump now or hang in there ?
Currently now lead engineer, responsible for liasing with Ops manager and dishing out work and routings for 3 other engineers.
Very small firm, run by a very odd and paranoid character.
This chap was diagnosed with Leukemia of some sort in Jan.
He has pretty much only been in for about 12 days since then, and has nothing positive to say about anyone, despite us keeping the lights on all year.
We are now grinding to a halt as he sacked the sales rep very early on in the year.
The Ops manager can sell, but needs soemone manning the phones to allow him to visit clients.
This isnt happenig, and we are seriously runnign out of work......
Sales are below norm and IM concerned about the future...
Jump now or hang in there ?
SpeckledJim said:
Buy the place.
I've just done exactly this. Everything I own, plus a very large mortgage, is going into buying part of the firm from the ailing owner. OP - if you head down this route, the trickiest bit may be to help the owner understand that you're not trying to cheat him out of all his hard work and investment, especially if he's a bit peevish.Its a service type business, and the bigger players are now taking on the lower end of the market as theyve saturated the upper end.
We cant compete with them on any level really.
I briefly thought about a buyout, but I know he would want crazy money for it.
I also think the market is shifting away from non branded - to brand names
We cant compete with them on any level really.
I briefly thought about a buyout, but I know he would want crazy money for it.
I also think the market is shifting away from non branded - to brand names
Edited by Turn7 on Tuesday 9th July 20:30
The Moose said:
Turn7 said:
I briefly thought about a buyout, but I know he would want crazy money for it.
Funny things happen with illnesses.Talk to him and then make a decision...
Turn7 said:
Talking to won’t work
I think he is totally in denial about how ill he really is, plus he never tells us the truth about anything anyway.
To say he is very odd is a huge understatement.
Who knows! One things for sure - I’d you don’t talk to him, you won’t get anywhere!I think he is totally in denial about how ill he really is, plus he never tells us the truth about anything anyway.
To say he is very odd is a huge understatement.
My FIL bought a small business from a guy who was very ill. It took a while to make the deal happen, but eventually this other guy was left with the option of either taking the deal or basically chucking everything in the skip.
Having said that, as you describe him, I’m amazed anyone stays working there!
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