The politics of a small, family held company ….
Shay has a good point. How could a large mega-company force a small, privately held company to sell?
Well, the rest of the story was like this. An executive from the mega-company in question was overheard saying in a public place that they would either purchase us, or grind us into the dirt. This company is big enough that if they wanted to hurt us economically they could do so. The company in question has already proven that they can do exactly that with other small companies who owned “territories” they wanted to expand into.
My company is family owned. It is currently in a transition period where the latest generation of family are starting to assume positions of power. Their emphasis is less on family values, and more on profits. I’m not saying this is a bad thing. No profits = no company, after all.
But, if faced with being crushed and left with a worthless company or selling out and getting something for their holdings, I believe this new generation would not be so foolish as to refuse to sell. They would be left set for life if they sold, and left to work in the real world for the first time in several generations otherwise. The question comes down to whether this was a chance and idle remark by Mr. Mega-Company Exec, or if what he says reflects his company’s philosophy.
It is possible to force the sale of a private company. My boss discussed this frankly with his executive team (including me) this morning. They’re holding some emergency meetings this afternoon Up Top to discuss the situation. It’s quite out of my hands. I just have to see how things play out.