Kahului, Hawaii — James Whitcomb founded Haleakalā Solar (Haleakalā means “house of the sun”) on the list, in 1977 as a self-described “a long-haired hippie surfer.” But he built up his company, No. 47 on the Solar Power World Top 250 Contractors list, in the ensuing 35 years and now has 11,000 customers.
Whitcomb wants his business to survive him. To help that dream, he’s brought his two children, daughter Lynn and son Matt, into the business. Lynn has worked in the business for four years, and Matt has worked there for eight years.
“My children grew up going to job sites with me,” Whitcomb says. “After they graduated they took jobs where they didn’t have to work for Dad. But the solar bug was in their DNA, they soon came to work for me.”
When they decided they wanted to work for Haleakalā, Whitcomb set a few ground rules.
“I started both of them at the bottom,” Whitcomb says. “Whenever they complained that they wanted a management job, I told them they were in “wax on, wax off” training. Now my son is an operations manager, and my daughter is an administrator. They both know that it is 100% up to their performance as to whether they take over the business one day.”
So what’s the most important tip Whitcomb can give his fellow installers who want to bring their kids into their businesses and ensure a smooth succession.
“Make your kids earn their position,” Whitcomb says. “I have given both of my children suspensions of work with no pay, and I even fired my son. Make your kids comply with all the same rules as the other employees. If you give the business to your children, they will not value it as much as you do.”
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