Navigating the intersection of family and business
Where Relationships Meet Legacy
Family enterprises represent unique complexity—where intimate relationships intersect with fiduciary responsibilities, where childhood dynamics influence board decisions, and where succession planning touches both emotional and financial futures.
My work with family businesses addresses this complexity through sophisticated understanding of both systemic family patterns and the particular pressures of shared enterprise. This isn’t business consulting—it’s deep exploration of how family dynamics shape, support, or undermine business success.
Quote
The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes but in having new eyes.
Marcel Proust
Understanding The Intersection
Family enterprises navigate distinct challenges:
Systemic Patterns in Professional Context
- Childhood roles replaying in boardrooms
- Generational patterns affecting leadership styles
- Unresolved family dynamics impacting business decisions
- Power structures spanning both domains
Succession and Transition
- Preparing next generation for leadership
- Managing founder transitions with dignity
- Navigating sibling dynamics in succession
- Balancing merit with family loyalty
Boundary Complexity
- When family conflict affects business performance
- Managing non-family executives within family dynamics
- Protecting family relationships during business challenges
- Maintaining professionalism within intimacy
Developing Organisational Intelligence
This work helps family enterprises develop collective relational intelligence—the capacity to:
- Recognise when family patterns infiltrate business decisions
- Separate role from relationship
- Navigate conflict without fracturing family bonds
- Create governance structures that honour both domains
- Build communication that serves both business and family needs
For multi-generational wealth, this includes understanding how family narratives about money, power, and responsibility shape business culture across generations.
The Therapeutic Framework
Sessions may involve:
- Family members in their business roles
- Exploration of historical family/business dynamics
- Separate work with different generations
- Integration sessions bridging understanding
This maintains therapeutic depth while respecting business realities. The focus remains on transforming relational dynamics rather than business strategy, though the two invariably influence each other.
Professional Understanding
Having worked with numerous family enterprises across cultures and industries, I understand the unique pressures when personal history meets professional responsibility. This work requires sophisticated handling of multiple relationships, roles, and the complex boundaries between them.
Begin This Work
Whether preparing succession, addressing family conflict affecting business, or seeking to strengthen both domains, I invite you to explore how this specialised work might serve your family enterprise.