The Family Business Consulting Group (FBCG) consistently comes up as a top resource when we talk to family business leaders on the Successful Generations podcast. In this episode, we’re talking to FBCG’s Managing Principal Drew S. Mendoza.
Over the last 20 years, Drew estimates that he’s spoken with 1,000+ family business and somewhere between 6,000- 10,000 family members and executives. In the family business world today, Drew says he’s seeing a lot of movement in family businesses towards family governance, family councils and family meetings. He’s also seeing more focus on preparing the next generation to be good business owners (excellent!!!).
Drew and Ellie discuss what it means to hire a family business consultant, who should (or shouldn’t) work with a consultant, trends in the family business space and much more!
To connect with Drew visit thefbcg.com or call (773) 604-5005.
In this episode:
- Meet Drew (3:10)
- What interests Drew about family business? (5:30)
- Current trends (10:45)
- Value proposition of hiring a consultant (14:32)
- Obstacles to hiring a consultant (19:48)
- How can consulting save families? (26:52)
- Family consultant or family therapy? (33:52)
- Resources (41:20)
- Setting boundaries (48:03)
- How to find Drew (53:43)
- Bonus questions (1:00:00)
Guest Bio
As managing principal of The Family Business Consulting Group, Drew specializes in assessing the needs of enterprising families having completed thousands of intake assessments since the firm’s founding in 1994 and hundreds more before that as the founding director of a leading university based research and learning center for family businesses. His assessment skills provide a unique springboard to the success of the firm’s engagements.
In addition to helping families define their challenges, he also listens for clues about their culture and value system to be sure the solutions provided are a proper fit to the culture, values and their family mission and vision. As the company’s chief executive, he oversees strategy as well as the platform which supports the firm’s clients and consultants.
He is co-author of Siblings and the Family Business, has appeared on PBS, CNN, CNBC and National Public Radio’s Marketplace and has been quoted in the Philadelphia Enquirer, New York Newsday, Chicago Tribune and multiple internet media outlets. His work has been published in Family Business Magazine, Family Business Review, Family Business Advisor and Trusts and Estates Magazine. He has lectured and delivered workshops internationally to universities, YPO, trade associations and professional service organizations. Drew also provided expert testimony to the U.S. Senate Finance Committee on the impact of estate and gift taxes on family firms.
In 2017, Drew received the prestigious Richard Beckhard Practice Award by the Family Firm Institute for his outstanding contributions to the field of family business practice. He also is a former member of the Family Firm Institute board of directors and past associate editor of the Family Business Review. He served on the trusts and estates advisory board committee of Trusts and Estates Magazine. Before joining FBCG at its launch in 1994, he was the founding director of the Loyola University Chicago Family Business Center.
Notable & Quotable:
It’s interesting to see how different families delineate the boundaries of family and a business. —Drew Mendoza #successfulgenerations
Family business is about managing paradoxes… There’s the overlap of family, ownership, management, governance and the individual. All of these different systems are at play and it’s complex. —Drew Mendoza #successfulgenerations
Every family and every business has its own special qualities and values and culture. —Drew Mendoza #successfulgenerations
In family business, leadership changes generally occur once every 30 years. In non-family business, leadership changes happen every 3-4 years. —Drew Mendoza #successfulgenerations
Resources mentioned in this episode:
- Why the World Needs Family Business Consultants
- Family Champions and Champion Families: Developing Family Leaders to Sustain the Family Enterprise by Joshua Nacht and Gregory Greenleaf
- Vetting a Family Business Advisor
- Should I Leave the Family Business
- Building Family Harmony Starts by Living Our Values
- The Roles and Responsibilities of Family Ownership
- Family Business as a Paradox by John L. Ward, Amy Schuman and Stacy Stutz
- YPO Family Business Network
- Family Business Magazine
- Family Business Alliance – Grand Rapids
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