Help with a family business

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Should You Make 'Family Owned' Part of Your Brand?

Family ownership can build trust, credibility, and customer loyalty—but only when it reinforces something stakeholders value. Here are five questions to ask first. Family businesses often face an Read More...

Category: Research Insight

Authors: Kimberly Eddleston and Ananya Mehta

A Family Illness Can Infect the Business, Too

Serious health problems can disrupt leadership, finances, customer relationships, and more. New research shows how family firms can prevent illness from becoming a business crisis. Family businesses Read More...

Category: Research Insight

Authors: Kristen Shanine , Kristen Madison and Marilyn Whitman

Why PE Firms Want to Buy Your Family Firm (and Change it)

Family businesses are often viewed as ripe for operational improvement, making them especially attractive to private equity investors seeking value creation. EDITOR'S NOTE: This article was produced Read More...

Category: Research Insight

Authors: Sören Paleit , Frederik J. Riar , Marcel Hülsbeck and Andreas Hack

Give Future Leaders Exposure to Critical Roles

A job rotation program gives next-gens both hands-on experience and a working knowledge of different departments and important outside relationships. A family business’s future leaders may have Read More...

Category: Interviews

Author: Kimberly Eddleston

Interviewee: Aimee Wrubel

Why Family Business Strengths Can Become Weaknesses in a Crisis

Family businesses often rely on loyalty, long-term thinking and strong relationships. But research shows those same strengths can backfire when crisis hits. For most family business owners, the Read More...

Category: Research Insight

Author: Michael Kuttner

Strong Family Businesses Think Short Term and Long Term at the Same Time

In a crisis, family firms cannot afford to focus only on immediate survival or future legacy. The most resilient ones do both, drawing on past lessons, trusted relationships, and long-standing Read More...

Category: Research Insight

Authors: Vanessa Diaz Moriana , Eric Clinton , Catherine Faherty and Colm O'Gorman

How Leaders Can Transfer Their Great Instincts to Successors

A leader's tacit knowledge can make the company more successful, but it's a challenge to understand what's behind it or how to pass it down to next-gens. A family business leader's instinct -- often Read More...

Category: Interviews

Author: Kimberly Eddleston

Interviewee: Meghan Lynch

How Families Can Override Emotions to Make Better Judgments

When decisions become emotionally charged, it becomes harder to think clearly just when clear thinking is needed most. A family business leader said to me recently, “We need to make a decision, but Read More...

Category: Practice Insight

Author: Paul Edelman

What the Public Gets Wrong About Family Businesses

A new study shows that insiders see ambition, innovation, and complexity, but outsiders see tradition. Bridging that divide is key to future success. If you ask someone what they think of a family Read More...

Category: Commentary

Author: Katie Rucker

How Families Can Move From Conflict to Forgiveness

Set boundaries clearly and often, understand your own hot buttons, and be genuinely curious about why the other side thinks the way they do. Conflict is a normal part of the human experience, but it Read More...

Category: Interviews

Author: Kimberly Eddleston

Interviewee: Natalie McVeigh