Making the most of your family business
How do you describe running a family business? It’s hard to paint a clear picture of all the work that goes into establishing and sustaining a successful enterprise for someone who has never done it — much less explain the unique challenges that come from family dynamics and shared family wealth.
Balancing personal relationships with professional responsibilities is uniquely challenging.
If you’re the leader of the family business, you likely have younger generations looking to you for all the answers. That’s an especially tough position to be in as you get deeper into your business journey, and the questions that keep you up at night start to be less about the business and more about your life.
Maybe you’re already hearing the whispers in the back of your mind…
How much do I need to retire? Is that in sync with when I want to retire?
Do I sell my business to a third party or transition to my family? If I transition to my family, are they ready? Is this something that they want? How do I treat them equally? How do I implement family governance? Has our family legacy been defined? What do we want it to be?
The answers to these and all your other questions are unique to you; there’s no right or wrong answer. But your choices will have consequences — for your future, for your family, and for your business. Understanding the impacts of your decisions will help you build a path that aligns with your goals.
At MNP, family businesses are at the core of what we do. We work with families to uncover what they truly want to get out of their business journey and build plans to turn those dreams into reality.
In the following stories, we unpack common family business challenges and highlight how these families found solutions and emerged stronger. These case studies demonstrate how complex some stages of the business lifecycle can be and what you need to consider as you plot your future.
And when you’re ready to talk about what’s next for your family and your business, our team is here to help.
We can’t wait to see where business takes you in the years ahead.
Sincerely,
Glenn Fraser Senior Vice President, Private Enterprise glenn.fraser@mnp.ca