Tag Archives: family-owned businesses

10/6/19

Family Businesses Have More Women Leaders

According to the Pew Research Center, the percentage of female Fortune 500 CEOs reached an all-time high of 6.4 in 2017 (32 out of 500) and fell to 4.8 percent in 2018 after several women left those roles. With women comprising at least 40% of the world’s workforce and half of the population, it’s remarkable the number of women CEOs is so low.

In family businesses, it’s a different story. Ernst & Young (EY) surveyed the largest family businesses from top global markets. They found that the world’s largest, longest-lasting family enterprises are advancing women further and faster that their non-family counterparts. Specifically, the survey revealed the percentage of women in top management to be 22% and board membership, 16%.[1]

The difference begs the question why.

One reason is found in the long-term perspective of family businesses. They are more conscious of preserving a family legacy than an individual’s legacy. This coincides with the fact that in a family business a CEO’s tenure is longer than in a public company—an average of 20 years compared to 6. EY suggests that longer CEO tenures may serve to break down conscious and unconscious biases against women by giving company leaders more time and opportunity to witness women’s contributions and accomplishments.

Family-owned businesses are also characterized by their focus on people and relationships, in addition to profits. Their more social and broader purposes help family members and employees engage with each other, the company and their community. These priorities are largely accepted as inherent in females leaders.

An article published by Women in Family Business (WiFB)[2], adds to this perspective, stating:

“Family businesses are often more socially conscious than their non-family business counterparts. They are more likely to hire people and less likely to lay them off, more likely to support their communities, and far more likely to be concerned with the long-term health of their communities. And they are not as concerned with quarterly cash flow and profits, likely because they operate with far less debt. This is truly a family-motivated attitude — what kind of leaders put their families at risk?”

Further, family businesses, by definition, blur the lines between work and family. And men today, more so than in past generations, are sharing the responsibility of balancing work and family obligations–issues that historically have been seen as women’s concerns. The result, more women in leadership roles, further balancing societal benefits.

[1] https://www.ey.com/en_us/growth/how-family-businesses-are-embracing-women-in-leadership

[2] https://www.womeninfamilybusiness.org/women_and_family_business_good_for_one_another/

01/23/18

Sharing your family story makes your business stronger

Guest Blog: By Sally Collings

“We have no direct access to historical truth … Our only truth is narrative truth, the stories we tell each other and ourselves.”
— Oliver Sacks, The River of Consciousness

A team of researchers who set out to analyze the business attributes of family-owned wineries in Germany came across a strange fact. They were studying 21 wineries that were, on average, 11 generations strong; the oldest dated back to the 10th century, when Vikings were still colonizing Europe. About half of these family wineries had continued to innovate across generations in areas such as growing new grape varieties or adopting the latest production technologies. The other half were more inclined to follow than to lead, only adopting new techniques or entering new markets after their competitors paved the way.

Among the attributes that distinguished the more entrepreneurial wineries, one in particular was somewhat surprising. These business families had what you could call an “entrepreneurial legacy story” that they shared from one generation to the next. It might be the tale of a great-great-great-great-uncle, say, who rode his horse to Paris so that he could attend an auction to buy back the family winery after it was seized by Napoleon. At family meals and festive gatherings, stories of persistence in the face of peril, theft, adversity and war were told over and over again.

What is the significance of that? “These stories give meaning to today’s entrepreneurial actions and put current risks and problems in a broader context,” Peter Jaskiewicz of Concordia University’s John Molson School of Business reasoned. “It is hard to complain about losing a customer knowing your great-grandparents overcame war and starvation to build the business.”

From speaking with both the current generation’s leaders and their children, the research team found that the families less inclined to innovate lacked pride in their ancestors’ achievements. They either did not know the stories, or they played them down as being simply a matter of chance with no enduring significance.

Who would have thought that stories could actively make a difference to the capacity for innovation? Of course, this correlation will not be confined to German wineries. Stories are the glue that hold any family together, and the mortar that makes a business strong going into the future. If the current leadership connects the next generation to their shared narrative, the result is a more cohesive unit with aligned values and goals.

When the Mouawad family celebrated 125 years in the diamond, jewelry and watchmaking business, they set about creating a book that would capture their heritage so that future generations could appreciate it, as well as providing insights for other families seeking longevity for their business. After completing the process, current business leader Fred Mouawad says, “By better understanding our history we were able to set a better trajectory into the future.”

Set aside some storytelling time at your next family gathering. It is far more than an indulgence for the older generation: it could be the difference that makes your family enterprise a leader in its field, rather than a follower.

Sally Collings (founder and CEO of Red Hill Publishing, specializing in writing books for family businesses and social enterprises)