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management

September 1, 2006

Boeing’s Alan Mulally has accepted perhaps the most dangerous job in big business as CEO of Ford. Can he fix the besieged autos giant – or has he just been drafted in to take the heat off Bill and the family? Melanie Stern reports

Melanie Stern is section editor of Families in Business.

Boeing's Alan Mulally has accepted perhaps the most dangerous job in big business as CEO of Ford. Can he fix the besieged autos giant – or has he just been drafted in to take the heat off Bill and the family? Melanie Stern reports

Sell up, not out

July 1, 2006

It can be an emotional time and wading through the financial issues involved in selling your business could feel like walking in space. Be equipped, do your research and make sure you maximise your financial return, says Richard LeVine

Richard Levine is counsel in the private client department of the New Haven, Connecticut office of Withers Bergman.

Recruiting from within and beyond

July 1, 2006

Family businesses are increasingly being forced to look outside the family when recruiting the next generation of management. Grant Gordon discusses the results of a survey from the last IFB conference which reveals that family businesses are still an attractive option

Grant Gordon is Director General, Institute for Family Business (UK). www.ifb.org.uk

Walk the talk

May 1, 2006

Showing potential management talent you mean business is a challenge for family companies. Patrick Peyton explains how family businesses can attract and retain a strong management team against stiff competition for talent with non-family corporates

Patrick Peyton is chairman and CEO of Minneapolis-based thermal processing company, Despatch Industries, a family business. Previous to Despatch, Patrick was CFO of the Gordon P Getty Family & Trust.

Keep out of the ring

March 1, 2006

Family conflict can spiral out of control and before you know it there are legal advisors involved benefitting neither family nor business. Dennis Jaffe explains alternative ways of resolving conflict before it reaches the boxing ring stage

Dennis Jaffe is a founding partner of the new family enterprise consulting firm, Relative Solutions. www.relative-solutions.com

In the driving seat

September 1, 2005

Bill Ford inherited the mantle created by his great-grandfather Henry. His ability to protect and promote this precious legacy has been tested to the enth degree. He tells Scott McCulloch how he salvaged an ailing firm and why he values the workforce

Bill Ford doesn't see the carmaker that bears his surname as a family business but as a public company that retains the best attributes of a family business. As CEO of the world's second biggest carmaker, Ford says he's working for his children, his grandchildren, and the children of his employees.

Building a future for the business

September 1, 2005

Henry bought Able & Sons Construction 30 years ago after his father died unexpectedly of a heart attack. Henry grew his father’s business to $80 million in annual revenues, expanding into building churches and government buildings.

Henry bought Able & Sons Construction 30 years ago after his father died unexpectedly of a heart attack. Henry grew his father's business to $80 million in annual revenues, expanding into building churches and government buildings. He is well-respected in the community and proud of building the new Methodist Church, high school and city hall and expanding the county courthouse, hospital and the three elementary schools.

Ten rules for non-active shareholders

July 1, 2005

The management of non-active shareholders needs careful consideration. Training, dividends and compensation policies are issues that frequently arise. Peter May and Matthias Redlefsen highlight the easiest way to avoid conflict and satisfy everyone

Peter May is founding partner of the INTES Academy for Family Businesses and head of the German chapter of the FBN.
Matthias Redlefsen is partner of the INTES Academy for Family Businesses. www.intes-online.de

To be or not to be in the family business – that is the question...

November 1, 2004

Jean Duval had mixed feelings as he left the family meeting and drove back home.

Jean Duval had mixed feelings as he left the family meeting and drove back home. Once again he was very pleased with the outstanding results of the family business, Duval Food, which the management had presented to the family at the meeting. For the fifth time in a row, both sales and profits had risen significantly.

Jean was also highly satisfied with the excellent understanding which prevailed among his four children during the meeting.

Will non-family firms take their cue from family firms?

September 1, 2004

In April, Newsweek reported that family companies outperform their rivals on all six major stock indexes in Europe. There would seem to be a case for non-family firms to model themselves on their family-firm counterparts. Tony Bogod asks whether this is likely or, for that matter, possible

Tony Bogod is chief executive of the BDO Centre for Family Business and a partner at BDO Stoy Hayward.