Nepotism in Business
- Mia Masserio
- Dec 7, 2022
- 2 min read
Updated: Oct 7, 2024
By Mia Masserio '25
Nepotism is prominent in a multitude of different industries, from entertainment to music to business. Nepotism occurs when a business hires family members over non-family members. This in and of itself is not necessarily considered immoral; however, it comes with the inevitability that there may not be the same standards and treatment for family as other employees. Additionally, nepotism does not ensure that the people most fit for the job will be hired, as favoritism tends to overpower qualifications. Even when the candidate will clearly not do the job as well as someone with better skills and experience, companies look past this. This also applies with promotions, as some people with actual leadership skills could be overlooked for a family member. Along with hiring family members directly, nepotism also occurs when people are hired because of their connections, typically people with money and friends, in hopes of increasing business. This does not have to do with networking skills, but instead the position and status they have been born into. Nepotism is typically better and more fair in smaller businesses. For example, a family owned business cannot cause much harm when being passed down to further generations; the issue arises when other parties are involved. If a business is shared with partners or shareholders, it becomes different because other peoples’ jobs and money are at risk.
However, nepotism does not always lead to unfair policies and unqualified employees. Family and friends may share certain beliefs and therefore maintain the company's values. The business-owners will also likely know what these relatives and close friends’ strengths (and weaknesses) are and therefore the ability to give them a fitting position.
Sometimes, though, hiring family and friends also comes with the risk of entitled workers, who realize they do not need to give their best effort in order to keep their job. This creates an issue because these workers likely will not be willing to work long hours, fill in for others, or go above and beyond. Family and friends may also get away with things such as showing up to work late. This creates tension in the workplace and other employees may begin to question the values of the business’s policies.
Nepotism allowed Donald Trump’s relatives to succeed in the business world; Ivanka Trump admits “nepotism got [her] in the door”. Ivanka has had success in the modeling and fashion industry, but it was her family name that allowed for her fame. Her siblings Donald Jr. and Eric were given jobs in Trump organizations–a prime example of significant business positions being given to family members.
Hiring friends and family risks having entitled and lazy employees, and distributing unfair advantages and favoritism. Even though nepotism definitely is not always harmful and can help to maintain a company's core values, a lot of the time it does lead the company to thrive and be run by the best fit team. Hiring family and friends is not unethical per say; however, nepotism can easily become irresponsible and corrupt without careful decision-making.
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