Want a loan? Advice? When an employee needs help, many small business owners are comfortable mixing the personal with the professional and willingly provide some support.
J. Colin Petersen has assisted staffers in a variety of ways: extra cash, lawyer recommendations, loaning a personal car, taking employees to doctor appointments and replacing a stolen smartphone. And, “just listening to the anxieties of any of my team members that need a sympathetic ear or advice about how to handle a problem.”
In this Friday, June 29, 2018, photo, Nicole Drake, co-owner of Tropical Smoothie Cafe franchises in Gainesville and Ashburn, Va. with her husband Dennis Drake, laughs with employees Marni Herderson, right, and Dindo Zamora, left, as they work in the Ashburn, Va., store. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)Petersen, president of information technology company J – I.T. Outsource, believes that if he helps his 12 full-time employees when they’re wrestling with a problem, their performance – and in turn, his Fresno, California-based company – will benefit.
Many small business owners take an interest in their employees because they want a friendly or even family-feeling atmosphere, unlike the ambience of a big corporation. They also want staffers to feel appreciated as people, not just as workers, and know that employees who are treated well are less likely to leave. But employment law attorneys and human resources consultants advise owners to strike a balance – there can be unintended consequences when a boss is too friendly or too generous.
Nicole and Dennis Drake are mindful that the employees of their two Tropical Smoothie Cafe franchises are high school and college students who can use a little guidance about work and life. The couple asks staffers at the stores in Gainesville and Ashburn, Virginia, about school, what subjects they’re taking, how they’re doing. Nicole Drake, who describes herself as a math nerd, offers help with homework and makes sure that working at the stores doesn’t interfere with school assignments.