Case Study: Succession Planning in the Palliative Care Unit
Succession Planning in the Palliative Care Unit John Geddes Succession planning is often delayed or avoided due a number of reasons. And while the details may differ client to client, failure in this area is a phenomenon common to many family enterprises. The following story details a difficult and complicated situation for one of my clients. Bill, aged 68, had an 80% majority ownership in a third-generation glass cutting and installation business in the Mid-West US, which I’ll call “OM Glaziers”--“OM” for short. The company cut and installed glass shower stalls for condo
Take A Seat…Cautiously!
In this week’s guest article, contributor Randy Waesche discusses how advisors should be aware of the fiduciary responsibilities they face when taking a seat on the board of a company they advise.
Research Briefs: The latest FBR research for Practitioners
This issue of Executive Summaries from FBR Assistant Editor, Karen Vinton, covers a range of topics, from the use of storytelling in an effort to foster business growth to the pros and cons of paternalism in family enterprises.
The Doctor is In
This week The Practitioner brings you an interview with an MD, MBA turned Family Business Advisor.
Managing Complexity: Coaches and Advisors
As a third-generation family business owner, I understand the many complexities facing family enterprises—issues I simply could not appreciate as a child growing up in such a business.
Rethinking our Role(s) as Practitioners
The marketing and selling of professional services makes most of us uncomfortable. Many of us may not realize that our clients know the difference between “marketing” and “selling”.
Listening to Learn
We hope that our ongoing interview series has been keeping you informed of the latest research, developments and thought leaders in the field.
Interview with Joachim Vandaele, CEO of TrustedFamily
Joachim Vandaele: TrustedFamily was established with the objective of uniting families, and keeping them together.
Sharing the Wealth
When it comes to trust and estate planning for family enterprises, prudent tax strategy is king.
Research Brief: Latest FBR Research for Practitioners
Well, the time has come again for Karen Vinton to recap Family Business Review’s stellar research offerings and provide insight for practitioners. This week we offer three Executive Summaries.
Online Education: The Future of Learning
When it comes to the rise of online education, the writing is on the wall…or more accurately: on the computer monitor! Yet a healthy number of people remain skeptical of the online approach. This is precisely why I’m eager for you to read this week’s Guest Blog entry by Jane Hilburt-Davis, who’s been closely following multiple studies on this subject, conducted by various accredited universities, research firms—and even the U.S. Department of Education, which did a meta-analysis on more than a thousand empirical studies about online learning, to ultimately conclude its
Sustaining the Field, The Families and The Future
“Sustainability” is an oft-heard catchphrase these days—from agriculture and energy to business practices.
Research Briefs: Latest FBR Research for Practitioners
Good research never goes out of style. So this month, we reach back in time to bring you Executive Summaries from editions of Family Business Review past from Karen Vinton who was more than game to rise to the challenge. And although this trio of recaps harks back from the March 2012 issue of FBR--when FBR first began the Executive Summary initiative, some of the articles originally ran in 2011. To bend your mind even further, Summary 3 reviews three books that should be on all practitioners’ "must-read” list—thoughtfully summed up by Worcester Polytechnic Institute’s Frank
Investing in Infrastructure
Today’s blog entry and accompanying article bring you something different: a granular investment idea that advisors can bring to their clients.
Knowing Your Target Audience
Having a clear picture of your core demographic isn’t just a golden rule in advertising; it’s also an important piece of information in advising family enterprises.
Research Briefs: FBR Research for Practitioners
Last month, I was thrilled when asked to introduce my executive summaries of Family Business Review articles, in The Practitioner Wednesday Edition. I’m equally excited to present another assemblage of recaps for you today. Narrowing my selection to only three was no small task, since each of the articles is incredibly strong and certainly worthy of a closer look. But I think you’ll find the three I’ve chosen to be a wonderful representation of what FBR has to offer and what we as practitioners can learn from the latest research in the field. And of course,
Coloring Outside the Lines…And Outside the Circles!
Known as the “Age of Reptiles,” the Mesozoic geological era—lasting from 250 million years ago to 65 million years ago, saw pterodactyls, iguanodons and other scaly creatures meet their extinction–theoretically because of their inability to adapt to vacillating climate activities.
The Core of the Issue
FFI research rocks! There’s simply no better way to characterize the cutting edge academic reportswe’ve been bringing our global members for years--most pointedly through our flagship scholarly journal,Family Business Review. Since 1988, FBR has provided multidisciplinary research on critical matters facing family enterprises—from workplace conflict resolution, to intergenerational business transfer, to trust and estate planning issues. Bear in mind: the family enterprise discipline is still in its relatively nascent stages, and the academic community has a lot to puzzle its way through. But based on the consistently high quality reports we’ve seen, there’s a wealth of
Dancing with the Family Enterprises
This week, allow me to abandon my usual preamble and get straight to introducing our esteemed guest article contributor, Guillermo Salazar.
Developing Next-Generation Leaders
Guest Blogger: Andrew Keyt When preparing families for business succession planning,advisors often mistakenly narrow their focus to the single individual they deem most capable of running the business upon a CEO’s retirement. But to truly make sure families preserve their core values while maintaining strong corporate governance and sound strategic planning, advisors should make it their business togroom all next-generational family members for unique leadership positions. Since I began working with successors in 1997, I’ve seen first-hand how so many NextGen family members are ill-prepared to assume leadership roles. But this situation can be avoided