HomeSituationsOwnership & businessFamily business succession
TN/SIT/14
Edition 2027 · effective 1 January 2027
Ownership & business · Family business succession
The founder will step back. The family has not agreed who steps forward.
Succession joins family and business decisions that should be separate. A family council, facilitated well, makes the process legitimate for those who lead and those who do not.
§ 01What it looks like
Recognise it early. The earliest moment is the cheapest.
What you notice first
Small, and easy to explain away.
- Succession is discussed in private, never together
- Next-generation members compete
- Non-family executives are uncertain
- Ownership and management are confused
What waiting can cost
Usually more than the original issue.
- Continuity of the business
- Family harmony
- Value across generations
Family business leaders who say the family has a succession plan, leaving nearly four in ten without one.PwC Global NextGen Survey 2022 · 2022 ↗
§ 02The Neutral route
Usually: Facilitation.
Facilitation creates a fair family process; evaluation tests candidates and plans; a Standing Neutral stays through the transition.
Facilitation
The group decides. The facilitator owns the process.
Also used · AdvisoryNeutral Evaluation
You decide. The evaluator advises.
Also used · Depends on the activated roleStanding Neutral
The parties decide. The Standing Neutral is available, informed and activated by rule.
§ 03The steps
What a good process looks like.
- Separate ownership, governance and management successionBefore anything else01
- Set up a facilitated family councilThe moment independence enters02
- Use an independent evaluation of readinessWhere the work is done03
- Agree a timeline and a family charterSo it holds04
§ 04Prepare and avoid
What to bring. What to leave out.
(Bring)
01
Shareholding structure
02
Current roles
03
Each family member’s aspirations
04
Business strategy
(Avoid)
✕
Announcing a successor before the process
✕
Leaving succession to the will
§ 05Your version
Every situation is different. Describe yours.
§ 06Related