Family Business

We Know The Odds…

History tells us that family owned businesses fail more than they succeed.

• The average life cycle of a family business is 27 years, meaning that all too many family-owned businesses never make it past the first generation
• Children of business founders run only 30% of family firms. Grandchildren run only 13%. Great grandchildren run less than 3%

These statistics tell us that much of the family wealth created in the first generation is frequently lost by the third generation. This is aptly described in the classic proverb:

“Shirtsleeves to shirtsleeves in three generations.”

There are many reasons:

• There is often a perceived conflict in differing generational values and beliefs about leadership styles
• Succeeding generations may experience family problems becoming business problems and opt out of taking on leadership and management roles, while still maintaining a sense of entitlement through their ownership

The list goes on. We believe that a sustainably successful cross-generational family business requires a continuity that must be consciously led and managed. We succeed by helping family businesses beat the odds by:

• Maximizing effective communication through shared values, and building a sense of community
• Growing the family’s Human and Intellectual capital