RECAP: 2018 FOX Fall Enterprise Forum

Presenter: Alexandre Monnier, President, Family Office Exchange   Session Description:  What makes a resilient family thrive and a sustainable family enterprise strong across the generations? Attendees were offered a deeper look at FOX’s approach to Enterprise Thinking and how members utilize this mindset so that every generation can be a first generation.

Key Takeaways:  

1. Families are complex social systems exposed to changes or shocks such as leadership succession, the sale of a family business, changes in ownership structures, the termination of a trust or external forces that impact a family. Families need to become resilient to stand the test of time.
2. There are five key pillars to building a sustainable family enterprise, these include an enterprise vision, family capital, business capital, financial capital and philanthropic capital.
3. To engage your family in creating an enterprise mindset, there are some critical questions you need to discuss with your family:
   • What do we most want to pass down to the next generation?
   • What are our reasons to stay together as a family enterprise?
   • What does our shared vision look like?
   • What are our best structures and governance?
   • What type of roles do we envision for the family?
4. Understanding the past as a prologue to the future, generating alternative pathways for the future, and creating a shared vision and roadmap will aid in building a shared vision for your family enterprise.
5. Develop clear enterprise goals, with the understanding that certain responsibilities cannot be delegated:
   • Articulate the vision and mission
   • Set up a governance framework
   • Resolving conflicts at family level
   • Fostering learning
   • Managing relationships with outside world
   • Ensure family fun and nurturing relationships
   • Strategies must be integrated across the enterprise
6. Strategies must be integrated across the enterprise with a formal governance system in place that has three distinct goals: establish leadership, articulate enterprise vision and goals and drives decision-making.
7. Structure the governance system around shared interests and get the family to take ownership of the process. Build clear levels of authority in each layer and have checks and balances to identify abuses of power so that family members have trust the system.
8. Family members may be passive or active. This can change over time and isn’t set in stone. It’s important to educate owners about the responsibilities of ownership, including their attitudes, behaviors, and skills that may impact the sustainability of the enterprise.
    

VIEW THE SLIDES & VIDEO >
(FOX Members only)