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Purpose-driven leadership: How family businesses can accelerate ESG

August 5, 2021

In the space of one year, social awareness has escalated and brought the world together in dealing with the health, financial and commercial impact of Covid-19. The way businesses work has changed. How they engage with other people has changed. Their expectations of the companies with whom they choose to do business have grown and intensified.

This has energised businesses of many types to reflect on their purpose and values, their capability to deliver what really matters and to do so in a financially, environmentally and socially responsible way.

The 10 steps to the perfect family office hire

June 10, 2021

When hiring for your family office you need to think family first and office second. Can this person take your husband to hospital appointments? Can they jump on a plane without notice to manage your international holdings? Can they watch your daughter’s recital if you are stuck at work or if you can’t make it in, can they take your seat at the table?

How Covid-19 spurred an Indian family business to embrace ESG

May 27, 2021

In the family council meeting in a city in India, the patriarch of the fast-moving consumer goods family business proudly proclaimed: “I have blocked a bed, nurse, doctor, oxygen cylinder and injection, which will be available for anyone of us if we fall prey to Covid-19. I’m not taking any chances.”

A hand went up: “Uncle, what if more than one of us needed it at the same time?” He smiled and said not to worry.

The impact of Covid-19 on global family businesses

April 30, 2021

The impact of Covid-19 was felt almost immediately in most industries and regions of the world. We believed that the first indicator of the impact of Covid-19 on family and non-family businesses would be reflected in their revenue and that proved to be correct.

Why leadership, trust and humility are key in family business

April 23, 2021

A third-generation successor turned adviser and author says the fate of his family business could have been “radically different” if he had been humbler as its principal.

A third-generation successor turned adviser and author says the fate of his family business could have been “radically different” if he had been humbler as its principal.

David C Bentall worked for 20 years in his family’s major Canadian business, Dominion Construction, including seven years as its president and chief executive. During his tenure as principal, the business doubled in size to $240 million in sales.

Transfer family business power to the next generation effectively

February 3, 2021

Family businesses are more vulnerable to inadequate succession planning because, understandably, members of every generation involved with the business are likely reluctant to discuss, much less contemplate, the incapacity or death of the current leaders.

Fostering family dynamics that boost entrepreneurship

January 26, 2021

Most family fortunes were forged thanks to a founding entrepreneur and their successors who managed to uphold their legacy over the generations. The entrepreneurial tale of the founder is often passed down proudly from generation to generation. However, it is also common to see the successor generations concentrate so much on the core business that they sometimes lose the very entrepreneurial drive that gave rise to their family business in the first place.

However, it is also common to see the successor generations concentrate so much on the core business that they sometimes lose the very entrepreneurial drive that gave rise to their family business in the first place.

Finding the Goldilocks zone of conflict in family business

January 20, 2021

Two brothers sharing ownership in a successful fourth-generation concrete business had a bitter falling-out triggered by an unlikely issue: a sailboat. The older sibling accused his younger brother of dipping into the company till to support his racing habit.

Why active ownership is here to stay

January 18, 2021

Active ownership, or proxy and engagement, has experienced a growing role in investment practices in recent years. As the light continues to shine on the importance of responsible investing and the integration of environmental, social and governance (ESG) considerations, asset owners have a responsibility to better understand both the risk factors and potential return associated with the ownership of a company they invest in.

Active ownership, or proxy and engagement, has experienced a growing role in investment practices in recent years. As the light continues to shine on the importance of responsible investing and the integration of environmental, social and governance (ESG) considerations, asset owners have a responsibility to better understand the risk factors and potential return associated with the ownership of a company they invest in.

A successor by any other name

January 6, 2021

In a recent family business event, a couple of young family business owners were asking questions around their role, finding their place and their individual voice. Questions motivated by their respective positions as heirs, beneficiaries, descendants, inheritors and ‘next-in-line’.

Any one of these descriptions are representative of considerable responsibilities and accepted norms. Taken together, they represent the range and depth of the obligations, paths and expectations which together are captured in one word: successor.