H&M Principal, Brian Ravencraft, recently sat on a panel for the Conway Center for Family Business. Our firm is a service provider for the center and we appreciated their invitation to have Brian speak on the topic of, “Compensation Strategies: Best Practices for Retaining Family & Non-Family Employees.”

The panel was moderated by Kori Manus from Heartland Planning Associates. Also on the panel with Brian was Jason Carpenter from Environmental Pest Management and Jim Wasserstrom from Advance Sign Group. Jason and Jim were able to speak to the topic from the business owner’s point of view, while Brian added information from an accounting and tax perspective.

Instead of sharing an overall summary of what was shared (so many great elements were touched upon)… here’s a few notable quotes from the panelists:

“Our largest asset is our people. We have to invest in human capital.”– Jim Wasserstrom

“We want our customer to feel our company culture through the interactions they share with our employees.” – Jason Carpenter

“What we see most times when planning compensation with the businesses we work with is that it all goes back to that long term vision, those long term goals. You have to have those for proper planning.“- Brian Ravencraft

“If employees feel confidant that you will invest in them, they will perform.”– Jim Wasserstrom

“Pay is consistent and fair, whether you are family or not.”– Jason Carpenter

“When people say that this is a great place to work, that is confirmation that you are doing something right.”– Jim Wasserstrom

“With tax reform, a big thing we are seeing a lot of right now with business owners is the dealing with the 20% deduction for pass-through entities. “– Brian Ravencraft

“Employees want to work alongside people who are also working and doing their job.“– Jim Wasserstrom

“You have to meet the needs of the employee and the things they seeking out.”– Brian Ravencraft

Learn more about the Conway Center for Family Business here: https://www.familybusinesscenter.com/