Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What does The Family Business Institute do?
We facilitate lasting business success and family harmony for our clients. When it comes to family companies, business operations often get in the way of harmonious family life, and dysfunctional family patterns get in the way of a profitable business life. The traditional, textbook, technical solutions to most problems associated with family companies don’t usually work. Family owned businesses have unique needs, and those needs require unique solutions.
Q: How do you help?
We help family businesses in radical ways: we actually talk to the stakeholders invested in the outcome of the family enterprise to try to determine their dreams, wishes, and desires. We interview not just family members employed by the business but also their spouses, key executives, family members who aren’t employed in the company, and others who may be influential in business family affairs (such as the family’s CPA or attorney). We bring an outside perspective and common sense to resolve sticky family business issues. Our experience in successfully resolving hundreds of family difficulties over the years has taught us that if there is hope and a real desire to improve the situation, win-win solutions exist, successful implementation is within your reach.
Q: I rely on my advisors (CPA, attorney, etc), why do I need you?
The Family Business Institute does not compete with any of your existing professionals. We don’t prepare tax returns or perform audits, and we don’t write contracts or practice law. The work we do complements the work done by your other professionals, and we partner with those individuals to resolve the uncomfortable issues that often face families in business together. Rather than focus on one relatively narrow part of the family owned business equation, we take a broad, holistic approach to understanding the family and the business. We also provide “soft” services to family companies like improving their communications abilities and creating comprehensive business strategies that traditional advisors don’t usually offer.
Q: How do we contact you?
Click here or simply give us a call at 877-326-2493.
Recent Posts
Planning vs. Urgency
Urgency addiction is a real thing in the construction industry. It feels good to solve problems, resolve a crisis, and get accolades for having “saved the day.” But constantly fighting fires and dealing with urgent problems tends to crowd out planning and setting...
Defining Who You Are NOT
A peer of ours went on a Viking Cruise Lines trip, and found that one of the ways Viking as a company defines who they ARE is by clearly stating who they are NOT. In an industry where far too many contractors try to be all things to all people, this exercise could...
How the Pandemic Era has Changed Construction
The 2020 pandemic disrupted and changed the construction industry in the short run for sure, but some of the disruptions more and more appear to be permanent. Where will you need new thinking, new skills, and potentially even a new organizational structure to adapt to...