Fall 2016 Hardlines Strategies

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best fit for each employee, Goebel says.
And he stresses that those employees
have the opportunity to do well in a
variety of areas.
“You want to make sure no one
feels left behind in the process, as
you search for the right roles for each
person,” he says. “We make it clear that
being a manager isn’t the only measure
of success. Not everyone is wired to be
a manager.
“You can be very successful in sales,
production, accounting or another
area,” he says. “We try to help people
find the right fit, and we provide as
many resources as possible in doing so.”
He says family members are
encouraged to take chances and see
where they might best fit in the business.
“We encourage them to apply for open
positions—sometimes you don’t know
you are good at something until you try
it—or sometimes we will actively seek
someone for a particular role.”
He also works closely with Star
Lumber’s accounting firm (which has a
family business consulting arm) to help
family members define what area of the
company might be the best fit for them.
Specifically, they utilize two types of
profiles employees can fill out. The first is
an interest inventory survey, which helps
people identify their interest and offers
suggestions on what types of careers they
may want to explore.
The second is a personality profile.
The test-taker also participates in a
debriefing and coaching after taking
the test to gain further insight into their
test results.
“These tests help people better
understand themselves and find the
correct role,” Goebel says.
“They provide some insight—maybe
you excel in this particular area, or
maybe this is something you should stay
away from,” he says.
And, Goebel emphasizes that many of
these ideas are scalable.
You may not have a nine-store
operation, as Star Lumber does, but that
shouldn’t hold you back from trying a
few of these suggestions.
“The leadership profiles can be
$45, or they can be $1,500,” he says.
“You can go online and find some
similar tests that can give some insight
into your style.”
He says one of the biggest steps is
carving out time to talk with family
members about the business and
offering opportunities for feedback.
You can try something as simple as
inviting everyone to meet for lunch—
yet another tactic Star Lumber utilizes.
Goebel regularly hosts extended lunches
for all active family members—those
who work at Star Lumber—to attend.
“We want to make sure our team has
opportunities to ask questions or bring
up anything that’s going on,” he says.
“We might bring in someone from the
community as a resource, or do some
fun exercises that spark discussion.”
He says one of the biggest goals is
to offer the chance for anyone to ask
questions about any topic related to
the business.
“A family business can be a great
thing, but it can also be a challenge,”
he says. “It’s good to recognize that
things may come up, and the natural
way to deal with it is talk about it.”
Gaining New Ideas
Through Time Away
Sometimes it can be important to take
a step away from the family business to
learn a little more in a different setting.
“It’s tough in a family business,
because if you grow up here, you
don’t always get the opportunity to
explore and test yourself,” Goebel says.
“Sometimes having those extra tools can
really help.”
Goebel was part of an executive
master’s program at Wichita State
University. “I gained a lot from it,” he
says. “I also spent some time working
at a different job outside the company
before returning to Star Lumber.”
Last fall, Patrick Goebel’s cousin,
Jeff Goebel, participated in the
North American Retail Hardware
Association’s (NRHA) Retail
Management Certification Program.
The Retail Management Certification
Program is a six-month, college-
level course that works to develop
future leaders in the independent
home improvement industry,
focusing especially on leadership and
management capabilities.
It is designed specifically for
independent hardware stores, home
centers and lumberyards.
The class includes three visits to
NRHA’s headquarters in Indianapolis
and culminates with the presentation
of a Business Improvement Project
students work on throughout their time
in the course.
Students also work on various
assignments that relate directly to their
business and receive guidance from a
mentor and a business coach.
Patrick Goebel says he appreciates
that Jeff had an opportunity similar to
what he had—a little time away from
the family business to learn and grow
on his own.
“I think it’s a good way for a leader
to gain more confidence,” he says. “Jeff
got away from me, from his dad, from
his brothers, and got to go try out some
things on his own.
“This course gave him an opportunity
to express his own views,” Goebel says.
“He got to throw his own ideas out there
and see what stuck.”
Blish-Mize offers a scholarship for
the Retail Management Certification
Program that covers half the cost of
tuition for the course, which played a
big role in Jeff’s participation in the
program, Goebel says.
“It says a lot that Blish-Mize feels
strongly enough about the program
that they are willing to provide the
scholarship opportunity—that’s a big
deal,” he says.
To learn more about the NRHA Retail
Management Certification Program,
please contact Scott Wright
at NRHA by calling 317-275-9417,
or email .
To learn more about the Blish-Mize
scholarship, contact Clay Uhrmacher
at
Hardlines Strategies • Fall 2016 39