Blog Articles
Working with families in business involves dealing with complex issues and profound challenges – from sibling rivalry to dysfunctional intergenerational expectations. Perhaps no problem is more complex, for both the family and the business, than …
By Jon Kenfield Founder and Chair, Family Business Institute FBI trains, accredits, markets and supports experienced professional advisers who work with business families and private clients. Our programs offer what is currently, by far, the most thoro …
What is a Professional Adviser? An adviser is a person who applies their superior knowledge and/or experience to tell others what they need to do to achieve their desired outcomes, based on current and anticipated circumstances. A professional is a mor …
“As ye sow, so shall ye reap” Recent conversations with other family business advisers confirm increasing exposure to business families with serious “fossilisation” issues. Naming no names, the problem seems most prevalent in families with seriously ag …
It’s estimated that Australia has over 600,000 family owned and managed businesses, and that they generate around 50% of GDP, and employ roughly 50% of our entire workforce. These figures are consistent with other Western economies. We all know that ru …
Leading a successful business is hard; keeping a family happy is harder; doing both at the same time is a challenge fit for heroes, especially when several generations are involved. A modern Family Office is a facility, or collection of resources, that …
Family Tragedy Every so often we hear classic examples of out of control family conflicts where, despite spending on lawyers and other advisers for “suppression and rectification” the family is heading for a very public and terminal meltdown, the trash …
When we look at family businesses around the world that have proactively maintained and enhanced their collective business interests over many generations, we find that they have usually employed a number of consistent strategies. I call these their “ …
Organisations that achieve long term, sustainable success invariably have: “a harmonious workplace AND a strong organisation.” Their high trust cultures encourage everyone to help everyone to do a great job – so the organisation’s goals are cons …
I think we’re missing the point. I’ve just attended, and presented, at yet another seminar on “Succession Planning” where, as usual, almost everyone talked about: maximising the value of the business for sale; tax and asset structures; insurance; …
