The Importance of the Family
Business is business. But family business is both business AND family. Adding the family aspect already makes things more complicated, but when you throw in ownership too, things can get tough to decipher.
Thankfully, there is a Three Circle Model that helps to explain things. This simple, yet powerful, tool has done more to help business families and their advisors understand all of the relationships than anything else in history.
Once you understand the Three-Circle Model, you can begin to see just how and why Family Businesses are different.
There are only Three Circles, but because of the overlaps, there are actually 7 different sectors. People from different sectors will naturally see things differently, from their own perspective.
Sectors 1, 3, and 5 are relatively simple to deal with. But in Sectors 7, 6, 2, and 4, the overlaps between Business, Family, and Ownership, make things trickier.
When you look at how the people from the 6 other sectors see things, and how all the people from the various sectors relate to each other, you can start to try to improve the communications between the sectors.
The key to moving forward together is to understand each other. The key to understanding each other lies in the communications.
Lets work together on your family business.
About Steve Legler
Some people work their butt off for their whole life trying to build a business for their family. They often dream about how great it will be for the family to work together with a common purpose. But the dream doesn’t always work out the way they imagined, because it is a LOT more complex than they ever imagined.
It isn’t usually the business part that trips them up, more often it is the family part. The roadblocks usually show up when it comes time to truly transition the business to the next generation, and this is where Steve comes in. He specializes in helping families turn their dream into a workable plan, using a step-by-step method to get everyone on the same page.
Once the family has completed his Business Family Continuity BluePrint, all family members will see the family’s goals, and they will understand their roles. Steve then helps them all figure out how they can move forward, working together.
Steve is a proud FEA Designate (IFEA) and holds ACBFA and ACFWA certifications (FFI), in addition to having an MBA (UWO-Ivey) He is also a CFA charterholder (CFA Institute), and the author of Shift your Family Business (Friesen Press, 2014)
“If you own a family business and want to read a fun book on how to become a business family you will enjoy this one. It is written from the business owner perspective and is straightforward. I’ve shared my copy with a number of people.”
Tampa, FLA
“SHIFT” is short but should not be read quickly. It’s personal, well structured, easily read, funnels the best of ideas from industry experts and, above all, provides the direction to make change happen. On the downside, the tone is sometimes lofty requiring some highly successful entrepreneurs to check their ego as they move through the book.
I have been the owner of a mid-sized business for the past sixteen years and know a number of other business owners/ families. Given this, I can say with confidence that Steve asks some pointed questions: “Who will run the family business? Who will own it” How will everyone work together”. Not easy questions to answer but “SHIFT” provides outstanding guidance and is well worth the investment in reading time.
Finally, the hardest hitting reason to read “SHIFT” is: “Making good decisions is about taking control while all the options are still available”. Buying “SHIFT” today is a good Start.
France via Amazon
If you are in a Family Business or you deal with a Family Business, and you are so busy that you cannot see the forest because of the trees, I would highly recommend you take some time and read this book. It reads very quickly and feels as if you are having a conversation with a friend of the family who understands what you are going through because he has gone through it with his own family. Very enlightening, very clear, and actually fun to read!
Canada via Amazon
I strongly recommend anyone that has a family business to read this book. Steve Legler will open your eyes as to what it takes to run a successful family business all while keeping family harmony. He provides lots of tips and advice in a way that is easy to understand. You can really feel his enthusiasm in the way he writes, and how he is committed to helping business families create the legacy and family spirit they really want.
Canada via Amazon