Events
The Challenge
To build a successful multi-generational family business or family office is to beat the odds; few businesses survive in family hands to the second generation and of these, under one-in-ten reach the third generation.
Any family business or family office faces unique issues, not least because the family itself may be a source both of strength and of additional complexity. How can your family avoid these pitfalls?
The Solution
The Family Business Forum is designed exclusively for family members with major family firms or family offices. At it, you will discover the solutions to your unresolved issues, by hearing from and working with business families from every continent.
What makes the Forum different is its emphasis on live family cases in table-sized groups. Firstly, you hear from a family about a real-life challenge they faced; next, in groups, you discuss what you might have done in their place; finally, you learn directly from the family about what they actually did.
World-class family business teachers, writers and consultants help facilitate discussions, draw broader lessons and contribute their own presentations.
The Family Business Forum
This intensive, dynamic and highly-enjoyable conference is led by top family business expert Peter Leach of Imperial College London. It is built around in-depth, live cases during which leading business families agree to share their hard earned experience in live family cases.
The final part of the Forum is devoted exclusively to a peer-to-peer advice workshop. This is the opportunity for you to seek advice on whatever questions are on your mind, by learning from the other families in a table-sized discussion group, together with practical advice from the facilitator.
Maintaining Family-to-Family connections
After the Forum, families are encouraged to stay in contact to share experiences and so make their different family business journeys all the easier.
The next Family Business Forum will be in 2024, the 25th Anniversary year since the founding of Loedstar. It will take place over two full days on Tuesday-Wednesday, May 14-15, 2024, in London (provisionally in the George V Hall at The Bloomsbury Hotel).
The full programme is being finalised, however we already know that it will be centred around live family case discussions, presentations by family business experts and peer-to-peer advice workshops. Please see below for an example of an earlier Forum to show the range of topics and formats that will typically be covered during a day.
Founder and Chairman, Peter Leach Associates Ltd.
Author “Family Enterprises, The Essentials”
Sir Richard Hoare*
During its long history, C. Hoare & Co. has enjoyed successes and survived many crises. 11th generation family member and owner-director Bella Hoare will begin the case by speaking about this history. In particular, she’ll mention significant early mistakes and the crucial decisions that enabled the company to recover from them.
*Reproduced with thanks to the National Trust
Peter Leach will then bring the whole room together, hearing what the different tables came up with and Group Discussion drawing broader conclusions.
Bringing the perspective of a fourth generation “family in-law” and CEO, Paddy will discuss why, at the time of this reorientation, the family also decided to simplify its shareholder structure and create greater clarity in family policies.
Working in groups, participants will explore some of the most common, yet difficult areas of family policy, where each family has to decide its own “right” answer to controversial questions such as: when family members may work in the business; in-law policy; dividend policy and family retirement age.
In the second part of the case, Peter Leach will ask each table to share its findings and will add his own
comments. Next, Paddy will use the “co-creation” of the Slowe family’s constitution to illustrate how
the end result is inevitably unique, reflecting an individual family’s own process, culture and history.
He will explain some of the key policies that his family decided upon, the rationale behind them and
how family engagement has increased since.
In the closing discussion with Peter Leach, Paddy will be joined by his son, Harry Walker, bringing the
viewpoint of a fifth generation family member who does not work in the business.
Case Studies
Retail and distribution (Ireland)
In a large family, with few in the business, how can the family remain committed to the business?
Forum helped family realise the risks of future shareholders with limited understanding or connections to the firm
Second generation (Middle East)
Pre-empt future problems
Identified predictable future issues; jointly created a family constitution to address them early
Multi-generational retail business (Europe)
Many family members but few in the business; reducing emotional connection between family and firm
Hearing from another family encouraged them to create a detailed family constitution that defines how everyone can be involved
Diversified (Middle East)
Former Family CEO who has handed on key responsibilities finding it hard to let go and risking creating tensions
Confidential discussions arranged with elders from other firms who had successfully changed their role. This led to a creative solution that suited everyone