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A Practical Guide to Family Business Succession Planning - The Advice You Won't Get From Accountants And Lawyers

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Next Generation

Painting a Picture

Can you paint a picture for the next generation for the next 50 years with respect to employment opportunities, management and ownership?

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Critical Issues

The Family Component

"The most critical issues facing business-owning families are family-based issues more than they are business-based issues." Ward, J., Perpetuating the Family Business, (2004).

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Current Owners

Letting Go

“The final test of greatness for a family business owner is their ability to let go”.

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Succession

"Succession is the challenge most likely to make or break a family company. How does one transfer ownership and management in a way that serves the needs of both the family and the business? [...] succession has been the one issue that has consistently thrown successful companies and families off track".
G. Pitts (2000)

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Management Succession

The process of choosing the next generation successor(s) is often more difficult in family businesses than their non-family counterparts.

Ownership Succession

One of the biggest challenges associated with this process is the difficulty that the current owners have in letting go of their business.

Governance

There are many governance structures that can be implemented in order to facilitate the management and ownership succession processes.

What We Do

  • Grooming
    Preparing successors for leadership and ownership is an integral part of any succession process. Ensuring a grooming plan is in place for all the potential successors will help the current owners obtain an appropriate level of comfort with respect to the successors competencies, work ethic, and commitment to the family business.
  • Exit Strategies
    In order to minimize the conflict arising from the exit of a family member from the ownership ranks, all exit strategies (death, disability, incompetence and voluntary exit) should be clearly identified, agreed upon and included in the shareholders’ agreement.
  • Communication
    Communication is key in both the management succession and ownership succession processes. In effect, it could be said that communications is the key element in a successful succession process.
  • Formalization of Management Processes
    All businesses eventually reach a stage where their processes and procedures need to be formalized. Walsh FBAS realizes that the opportunities that the family business creates for the family would not exist without the business.