Family Business Consulting

 

A unified and healthy family is a critical component in ensuring the sustainability of a family business. However, often more effort is put into the business strategy than into the family strategy. A family strategy addresses a wide range of critical questions including:

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• Why we continue to be in business together?

• What are the values that drives the family and business?

• What are the expectations and desires around ownership and liquidity and financial return?

• What are the employment opportunities for current and next generation?

• How can we support education, succession, and governance?

• How can we build family cohesion and bonds for successor generations?

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Our customized engagements around family strategy provide a facilitated framework and safe environment for families to have respectful and productive conversations on potentially tough challenges and questions.

 

Communication & Conflict Transformation

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We tend to judge ourselves by our intentions. Others judge us based on the impact we had on them. FBSA helps families disentangle impact and intention through the development of communication and conflict transformation skills.

 

Conflict is an inevitable and, when done well, an effective part of family communication and progress.  Instead of managing or resolving conflict directly, FBSA helps families examine and reflect the dynamic communication patterns families hold that keep them stuck. The combination of improved communication skills and insights about patterns of communication offer the opportunity to transform a conflict into constructive way forward. As psychologically minded professionals, we have experience helping families to:

• Understand the nature of conflict triggers

• Develop active and empathic listening skills

• Learn how to validate while not necessarily agreeing

• Make room for differences without breaking the relationship

 

Coaching

Next Generation Development

 

Expectations of the next generation regarding responsible family business ownership and the role in the family enterprise can be high. Developing the next generations in a thoughtful and supportive way is a critical piece of successful succession and healthy family relationships. FBSA has deep experience in coaching the next generation using a process that includes:

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• a confidential dialogue with the next generation to define a path forward

• a structured process to share results with the organization – with contracting up front and milestones to review progress

• input and involvement by key stakeholders

• personality and behavioral assessment for deep insights, self-reflection

• creation and execution of a development plan designed to stretch and grow

• specific skill-building resources and support to achieve the goal

 

We engage next generation leaders to define a goal that leverages their strengths and desires and develops the skills needed to get there.

 

Executive Development

 

Family businesses are not static. They continually face new challenges across several fronts including changes in market conditions, ownership needs and desires, and employee bench-strength. Even seasoned executives may need to step into their leadership in new ways. Executive coaching provides both a safe environment and a rigorous process in which executives can accelerate their professional growth. Executive coaching outcomes:

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• Increased self-awareness through behavioral feedback and insight

• Accountability to a specific action plan

• Resources to provide deeper understanding of leadership topics

• A confidential sounding board to process real-time issues along the way