Leadership Across Generations: - IAM

Narratives abound about the myriad and often interesting
ways the most established movers in Europe began. It is
common to learn of a major player of today that started centuries
ago with a man, a wheelbarrow, and a horse or mule. Many venerable
companies took root in the ambition of ancestors who saw
a need to fill, and were built on the persistence and hard work
of successive generations who aspired to keep the family flame
burning under their own watch.
Family businesses also became commonplace in the United
States as settlements began to expand. West of the Atlantic Ocean
the communities and cities are younger than those in Europe, but
the same motives drove forward-thinking immigrants to capitalize
on the wanderlust on which the New World thrived.
Americans, like Europeans and other business owners around
the globe, could recount many colorful success stories associated
with their origins. Although today’s managers routinely utilize
state-of-the-art systems, GPS-equipped vehicles, and high-tech
logistics that bear no resemblance to the stars and the seasons that
guided U.S. migrants in their 18th-century Conestoga wagons,
FOCUS: FAMILY-OWNED BUSINESS
It’s All Relative
How Family-Owned Movers Succeed
many of the factors that have supported the viability of entrepreneurial
dreams are the same all over the world.
If the dozens of submissions The Portal received for this edition
are any indication, the generations may have a different perspective
on exactly how things should be done, but they are able
to work side by side toward their common goal. It wasn’t so long
ago that one heard of company patriarchs who, to the frustration
of their children, refused to introduce computers to the office because
they were new and not to be trusted. That has changed, and
certainly the receptiveness of leaders—whatever their age—to
embrace new ideas and harness technology has been key to their
companies’ survival.
This is true even in today’s challenging economic climate.
A good many IAM members have resisted the trend of being
merged into larger van lines or companies, choosing instead to
stay the course in hopes of passing along an enduring legacy to
future generations. Family businesses are a cherished tradition in
the moving business and are likely to remain so for many years to
come.