Many of you know we work with a lot of family-business owners, their family members as well as the non-family executives who work at these companies. Our work involves succession planning, executive coaching, leadership development, resolving family conflict, etc.
I wish I could tell you that this was an intentionally planned venture.
But it was only in the past five years that I understood exactly how much family-business consulting we were doing—I just thought of these businesses as typical clients. Then I spoke with John Montgomery, an executive at Southland Tube who, at the time, was a second-generation leader in the family business. After talking to him, I realized there was an entire industry devoted to the intricacies of family businesses. John had attended a national conference at Northwestern University for family-business executives and had met with a family-business consultant. After talking with John (and reading several books that consultant had written), I recognized just how much family-business work we were already doing.
We had been working in this sphere for a while; we had years of experience.
Continuing Education
Since then, two members of my team and I have participated in the Kennesaw State University Cox Family Enterprise Center program for family-business advisors. The Cox Center is one of the premier enterprise centers in the U.S. That experience, and what we learned there, led us to hosting three conferences in 2019 specifically for family businesses.
Earlier this year, we founded the Alabama Family Enterprise Partnership, a 501 (c)(3) non-profit organization dedicated to the unique challenges and opportunities associated with family businesses. Our non-profit fosters this family-business community through partnerships that engage and educate family members, non-family executives and family-business advisors who want to sustain successful companies and create meaningful legacies.
Our vision is that one day the non-profit will have a full-time executive director and be associated with a university or other organization.
Family-Business Conference
On Wednesday, August 28 from 7:45 to 10 a.m., we’re hosting a new conference on “Navigating Multi Generations in a Family Business.”
This conference is strictly for family-business owners, family members and their non-family executives. We’ll feature keynote speaker Kristin Scroggin, founder of genWhy Communication Strategies, who will identify the four generations active in today’s family businesses, discuss their strengths and needs, and talk about how to best motivate and manage each group.
Then, I’m facilitating a panel discussion with notable, local NexGen leaders—Chris Morrow, Grantland Rice IV and David Killion—who’ll candidly discuss the personal opportunities and challenges of working for and with family members of different generations.
Again, this conference is for family-business owners, family members and non-family executives. The family-business owners and executives who participated in last year’s conference asked that we exclude advisors from their event. They felt like they could ask more candid questions and explore more topics that way. We listened and changed the format.
At the conclusion of this conference, we are offering a separate session for advisors who work with family businesses.
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The conference is only $99 per person. (Participants will be attending only one session, not both.) You may send a check to the AL Family Enterprise Partnership at 6 Office Park Circle, #309, Birmingham, AL 35223, or contact Marc Corsini at marc@corsini.com to pay via PayPal.