Our Latest Articles

February 17, 2025 - Issue #135

Men and Women Cling to Power for Different Reasons While male leaders often view stepping down as a threat to their identity and accomplishments, female leaders appear to be motivated by other factors.

How Family Businesses Can Recruit the Best C-Suite Candidates Family-owned businesses often struggle to compete with non-family firms when it comes to recruitment, and understanding the expectations of job seekers is crucial to attract the best talent.

Announcing FamilyBusiness.org's 2023-24 Schulze Award Winners Our newest group of winners — who published articles during the academic year of July 1, 2023 through June 30, 2024 — represent a diverse range of insights.

Craft Ventures are More Successful With a Couple at the Helm Family firms take note: A study of chocolate makers showed that shared values, commitment, and a long-term outlook are good for both relationships and business.

Justifiable Pride or Arrogance? It Matters for Family Businesses Bragging about your family connection is universally bad, but even pride in your accomplishments must be displayed carefully -- especially in eastern cultures.

The Psychology of Effective Exit Planning: A Guide for Families and Advisors Family firms can help the next generation move forward by understanding and supporting the emotional aspects of the exit for the current leader.

‘SOBs’: The Real Power in Family Businesses Saviors Of the Boss have the trust of company leaders and often serve as their gatekeepers. How to understand them and work with them.

The Perks and Pitfalls of Hiring Your Parents Allen Esrock of NxtGen Nexus weights in on how to optimize the free labor and other benefits, and how to manage conflicting goals, sibling resentment, and suspicious non-relatives who work for you.

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Families Can Overcome Generational Conflicts Over Technology

Ready to Lead: Building Confidence Across Generations

Define Your Legacy, and Strengthen Your Business and Your Impact

Listening to the Family: The Strategic Value of Surveys

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Recent

The World is Changing Faster Than Your Strategy

by Torsten Pieper, Claudia Binz Astrachan, Francesco Chirico, and Annika Ehlers / Research Insight

Families that learn to use their cohesion, trust, and long-term orientation as strengths can implement strategies more effectively than their non-family peers, especially in times of uncertainty. Read more...

Planning Succession? These 10 Decisions Are Critical

by David Deeds / Applied and Practice

Succession is not a single choice -- It is a chain of choices that interlock and compound. Avoiding any one of them will create friction or ambiguity. Read more...

Family Ownership Can Undermine Financial Health

by Ivan Miroshnychenko, Rui Torres de Oliveira, Alfredo De Massis, and Ruth Überbacher / Research Insight

However, those who invested more in R&D and operated in countries with strong and supportive institutions enjoyed better market capitalizations. Read more...

The 7 Gears of Leadership, And When to Use Each One

by Andrew Keyt and Greg McCann / Applied and Practice

Leaders acquire tremendous human capacities as they rise to the top. Their challenge is to deploy the right strength for each difficult situation. Read more...

by Susan Lanz, Gary Burke, Kajsa Haag, and Omid Omidvar

Let the Next Generation of Family Firm Leaders Chart Their Own Path

by Klaus Lüber and Nadine Kammerlander

How to Plan for a Successful Succession

by Richard Eisenberg

Here Are the Next Gen's Biggest Worries

by Kimberly Eddleston

How Family Dynamics Shape Family Businesses

by Joseph Astrachan and Claudia Binz Astrachan

Employees With Toxic Traits Can Still Be An Asset at Family Firms

by Benjamin McLarty and Daniel T. Holt