Whether it’s the crown, the baton or the family business, passing it on smoothly is the key to assuring that the next generation is not put off tackling succession and take over of the family business.
Pythagoras said that numbers rule the universe and whilst family businesses will be the first to attest the importance of keeping tabs of numbers and figures we’d like to share with you some of our own numbers accumulate during the last year and hope to be able to provide even stronger numbers next year.
New Year resolutions are typically associated with personal development and achievement. Albeit we typically and stoically look into losing weight, cutting down on alcohol or cigarettes, increasing our level of fitness or pinning our goals to buckets lists and targets.
As all parents can attest the soft and hard skills of running a business and a household are similar and yet so far apart. Merging both whereby your children and family members move to take on the additional of being your nearest and dearest to becoming your employees, eventually your colleagues and in the end, the boss is a transition on many levels for all the family members that requires quite a separation of powers and mentalities.
There comes a time in our life when for many people they hope to plan for a family and dream and work towards having children and raising them. We hope to guide and steer our children in the challenges of life and all that society requires to raise healthy, balanced adults.
An estimated 80 percent of the local business world is made up of family businesses – making them a very important part of the island’s economy and success story. Here Jo Caruana takes a look at the unique challenges – and opportunities – posed by this very particular business demographic.
Succession planning is smart business planning. It allows you to proactively develop people, rather than simply name them as replacements. Succession planning is about making sure your business can continue to grow and move forward.
If one looks at the history and economy of Malta, one will find it has been a very family oriented society with family businesses being part of the economy in an important way. Mostly with property but also changing according to the times the way the economy developed.
Financial planning is a process, not a product. It is the long-term method of wisely managing your finances so you can achieve your goals and dreams, while at the same time negotiating the financial barriers that inevitably arise in every stage of life of a family business.
Regardless of how small or large the size of a family business, succession planning for family enterprises presents a unique set of challenges. Not only can it be a complicated, emotionally-taxing process, but it also carries the potential to detrimentally affect family relationships, which can strain the business itself—often to the breaking point.
Phone calls. Emails. Text messages. Conference calls. Meetings. Video conferences. We are in constant communication, and yet so often we fail to effectively communicate. the proximity especially because of family members.
If a family business is intent on surviving with growth and stability and intends to pass the business to future generations it requires the ability to develop a defined strategy coupled with the flexibility to deal with emerging issues that will arise in this ever-changing and dynamic environment.
It is clear that family businesses are a major player in society, a large employer, and an economic force. They remain the bedrock of the Maltese economy and are vital to its success.
A successful business transfer takes place when “the skills and the desire to be in business” are transferred from one generation to the next (Shrapnel, 2014, p.7). In light of the increasing number of family members with each new generation, each having different expectations, family wealth can be easily squandered, unless managed properly. This would mean that the hard work of past generations is lost.
Transference of interests in family businesses is an inevitable path such businesses must cross. It is a challenging time for such businesses as family relations converge with business interests with the result that family members must strive to keep a balance on both fronts for the continued success of the family relations and business interests.
Over the past few months, the Malta Employers’ Association has organised a number of outreach initiatives which have been well received by employers.
An important part of the planning lies in bringing together the wishes of the patriarch and the aspirations of the next generation.
Succession Planning may be one of the most challenging experiences facing any Family Business owner, so it is crucial to get it right. For a Family-owned business, a solid succession plan can drive the growth of the business, manage taxes and set the stage for retirement. Succession Planning is a multidisciplinary process.
Dr Chris Cardona, explains how this scheme will not only benefit local family businesses but also our economy. This act will give guidance to how a family business should regulate itself, benefitting from these new incentives, and restructures itself, in order to prepare for the eventual transfer and succession of the business when the moment comes.
To travel on a journey with others requires a mutual respect and understanding. A preplanning dialogue seeks to generate a relationship that will be the foundation of positive communication, growth, and agreed upon direction. If there is agreement that the relationship is a good fit, a proposal would be developed outlining the process, timeline, and milestones. There is no one size fits all prescription for families or organizations; what is required is the ability to ask the difficult questions and raise the issues that are sensitive, yet must be discussed.