Challenge of Succession in Family Business
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The Family Institute at Northwestern University, a premier center for individual, couple and family therapy, community outreach, education, and research, announces the findings of its Family Business Program's research on the challenge of succession in family businesses.
The Family Business Program's (FBP) research team, led by Program Director Douglas C. Breunlin, a senior staff therapist at the Institute and a clinical professor of psychology at Northwestern University, and Alexandra Hambright Solomon, has just completed an article summarizing a three-year qualitative study in which owners of family businesses were interviewed in an effort to understand their narratives about their businesses and how succession in family businesses works, and particularly how it gets stuck.
"Other prominent researchers, including John Ward of the Center for Family Enterprises at the Kellogg School of Management, have contended that the owner of a family business is the most important factor in succession," notes Breunlin. "Yet few studies have actually addressed those owners. Consequently, the findings of this research shed important light on the single biggest issue facing family businesses today - that of succession."
The eight-member FBP research team recognized a number of important themes and drew a number of important conclusions:
This research was presented at an international conference sponsored by the Family Firm Institute in London, England in October 2008.
The FBP was established in 2003. Designed in accordance with The Family Institute's model of providing clinical service, community outreach, education and research, the FBP's focus is on strengthening and enhancing the relationships that families have with the businesses they own. The FBP builds on the Institute's extensive understanding of and clinical work with families to provide cutting-edge service when the interface between the family and the business is ailing.
Referrals for the consulting services of the FBP come from other professionals working with family businesses as well as from other therapists who are aware that the family-business interface is constraining progress in their therapy.
The FBP is staffed with professionals who have extensive psychotherapy training as well as other areas of expertise relevant to family businesses. "One member of the FBP team has a Kellogg MBA, while another is an attorney who worked for many years as a tax specialist," says Breunlin. "These multidisciplinary skills enable the FBP team to understand and work with the complex issues facing family businesses today."
For additional information on The Family Institute's Family Business Program or the research on the challenge of succession in family businesses, contact Jean Firestone at 847-733-4300, ext. 779, or visit www.family-institute.org.
The Family Institute at Northwestern University (www.family-institute.org) is a leading center for individual, marital and family therapy, community outreach, education and research, giving clients access to some of the most experienced psychotherapists and experts in the field. Headquartered in Evanston, The Family Institute offers close to 50,000 therapy sessions a year. The sliding-fee scale through the Bette D Harris Clinic ensures that no one is turned away regardless of ability to pay. The Family Institute also operates two nationally-renowned graduate programs in Marital and Family Therapy and in Counseling Psychology at Northwestern University. In addition, The Family Institute conducts important research that leads to a better understanding and improved treatment of mental health issues. The Family Institute is an independent not-for-profit organization affiliated with Northwestern University.
