Enterprise Family Resources

No family stays together as an enterprise without a conscious commitment to a common purpose and a willingness to work together to accomplish specific goals. The first step is to clarify the family’s identify, to find the areas of affinity where there is a common view, and to decide on the amount of togetherness that will energize the family. Sometimes knowing how to exit the enterprise gives owner the freedom to stay engaged without regrets. 

After making a commitment to each other, the enterprise family will carefully articulate the purpose for staying together and the boundaries of that togetherness. Giving definition to the dimensions of the enterprise help establish the areas that require collaboration. Then formalizing a clear vision for the future will strengthen the owners resolve to stay together and make it work. 

After the vision has been thoughtfully formed, the specific goals and strategies for each part of the enterprise can be defined.  Looking at the goals across the enterprise will ensure the proper deployment of family capital for each of the projects outlined by the family. And having clear metrics for how success will be measured is important to each domain – business capital, financial capital, philanthropic capital, and intellectual capital in the family enterprise.

Knowing the purpose for the enterprise and its key goals and strategies will allow the family to identify the proper governance structure to support the enterprise. Responsibilities for each layer of the governance structure will be clearly defined so the system itself can be trusted by the family.  A part of the process will include a set of skills criteria to be eligible for leadership and a transparent process for the selection of leaders.

The family will continue to value the enterprise if a thoughtful program is developed for preparing all stakeholders to be responsible owners and stewards of the system. Multiple layers of education, including parenting, family meetings, internships and formal training, are needed to ensure that the benefits of the enterprise are clearly understood. Establishing criteria and experiences needed to prepare for leadership roles will be helpful to the rising generations of leaders.