Strengthening the family business corporate brand

http://www.ifb.org.uk/ Sir Michael Bibby, chief executive of Bibby Line Group was the final breakfast speaker at the Next Generation Forum in 2010. His comments underlined the importance of the family business corporate brand as a magnet to help recruit and retain employees motivated to perform at their best. Sound values at Bibby including a focus on the long-term, quality operations, trust in people and support for communities, is part of what makes people “feel like they work for their own business” as Sir Michael puts it. By promoting a strong sense of goal alignment employees are selected both for their skills and whether they share the values of the business.

These insightful comments echo throughout the family business sector. Each family business works to reinforce the foundations of its corporate brand; underpinned by the origins of the family business, the reputation of the firm is carefully developed and shaped over time. Good stewardship leads to employees being more motivated, with retention increasing as they align withthe underlying sense of mission and values of their organisation.

Developing trust with consumers
Consumers are also savvy and want to know about the organisations behind the products and services they buy; convincing them for example that the business has sustainable and responsible sourcing policies can be a powerful differentiator in favour of the family business corporate brand. UK family business company brands such as C&J Clark, Wates and Bibby Line Group are examples of organisations where a strong corporate culture underpins successful business practices developing trust with their customer base.

In 2011 part of the IFB’s work will be to find out more about how these and other family firms have found a winning formula.

Brazil's Thriving Family Businesses

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http://www.ifb.org.uk/ Visiting Brazil as part of an IFB and Pi-Capital delegation of family business owners and entrepreneurs, last week, gave me a unique opportunity to meet leaders at the forefront of driving the growth and development of this rising global powerhouse.


The programme organised by Leaders Quest, included meeting Persio Arida, managing partner of BTG Pactual (Brazil’s leading investment bank) and Arminio Fraga, head of Gavea Investimentos and former President of the Central Bank of Brazil. Both are respected public figures and provided upbeat assessments on the outlook for their nation which is forecast to emerge as the world’s fifth largest economy. The UK’s Ambassador Alan Charlton also echoed this in a speech to the delegation.

A wave of optimism is sweeping across Brazil and the sense of opportunity is heightened by the fact that it will be hosting the World Cup in 2014 followed by the Rio Olympics in 2016. Meeting well known family-controlled business groups such as Camargo Correa, Odebrecht, Wilson Sons and members of FBN Brazil we saw strong signs of investing for growth. These groups, and others we visited, are achieving long-term sustainable performance, focusing on more than just financial results by strengthening their human resources to drive further growth. In a nation with wide disparities of wealth, there are barriers to social mobility partly due to weaknesses in the education system. The leaders we met are supporting social enterprises that are working to address these and other social issues. Some of the most progressive social entrepreneurs we met include internationally renowned Rodrigo Baggio, of CDI and Dr Vera Cordeiro of Saude Crianca; these and others showed us how their organisations are tackling some of the most endemic issues in their society.

Progressive governance practices are seen as key to enabling Brazil’s leading family controlled groups to achieve clarity in their vision for growth and combined with sound values Brazil’s family business sector is well placed to contribute to driving economic development. Buoyed by an expanding middle class the Brazilian market for goods and services consumption is set to grow, assisted by growth in exports of minerals and commodities. With the scourge of inflation now seen as a historical phenomenon the risks for Brazil veering off course appear to be limited.

Entrepreneurship - the pursuit of opportunity

http://www.ifb.org.uk/ I’m looking forward to hearing the opening address by Professor John Mullins, of the London Business School, at the IFB’s Next Generation International Convention 2011 in January. The convention’s theme is Entrepreneurship – the pursuit of opportunity and as associate professor of management practice in marketing and entrepreneurship, Mullins is an acknowledged expert in the field.

Professor Mullins will be developing some themes from his latest book Getting to Plan B, where he debunks the form-filling, spreadsheet-driven mentality popular in business planning. Mullins believes that entrepreneurs should adopt a series of ‘stress tests’ to their initial ideas so that any weaknesses can be corrected. He suggests that the real success of companies such as Google, PayPal, Starbucks and others was that they were prepared to rip up Plan A and make radical changes to their business model.

Cover via AmazonHe has also identified two other key criteria for any successful enterprise to assess. First many business people see fast-growing markets as a good area to explore, but Professor Mullins wants people to realise that the more important side of the equation is to ask whether customers will actually buy your product. Secondly if you’ve satisfied yourself on that question then you have to ask if you can build a sustainable competitive advantage in that industry – otherwise you might find a bigger player comes along and wins the day.

We feel sure that insights such as these will inspire and enthuse the next generation family members who attend the Convention 28-29 January 2011. It will be a great occasion for delegates to hear from a line-up of international speakers about entrepreneurship in all its forms - whether its starting a business, looking to set up a social enterprise, or just learning more about entrepreneurship.

You can hear more from Professor Mullins about these ideas on this video.

Innovation – why family firms lead the way

http://www.ifb.org.uk/ The FBN International Summit in Chicago, where over 650 owners gathered this earlier this month, highlighted how innovation runs through the veins of the family business sector. With shortening business cycles, the advent of disruptive technology, globalisation and hyper competitive markets there is no room for companies to hide. Family enterprises have to embed into their organisations a culture that embraces change and promotes innovation –their survival and growth depends on it.

At the Summit global players such as Odebrecht from Brazil, FIAT of Italy, and North America’s Bechtel Group shared how their values and culture supported innovation. By embedding progressive employment practices that embrace change and continuous improvement these organisations have risen towards the top of their respective sectors.

In the case of smaller family firms focused on niche markets the same rings true. The owners generally set the lead, seeing their primary role as recruiting a team of highly motivated and skilled entrepreneurs and managers. Some of the best exemplars included Radio Flyer, a Chicago based third generation toy company who have won numerous awards for their achievements, creating a culture of innovation among their 110 employees. Revenues here have leapt four-fold since the current generation took over leadership. From Spain, Leche Pascual stands out for the transformation of their corporate culture since the third generation took the helm, embedding a systemic approach to innovation within the organisation. This has lead to 50% of their EUR 900M turnover being generated from new products that did not exist a generation ago.

The key learning’s on innovation from the FBN Chicago Summit include:

• Start with the company’s values; ensure they support innovation and change

• Ensure the board is committed to embedding a culture of innovation through choosing leaders who will help drive change

• Develop employee practices that reward entrepreneurship and innovation at all levels

Family business entrepreneurship is alive and well in the Midlands

http://www.ifb.org.uk/ This year’s Midlands Family Business Awards, are helping put the spotlight on family business entrepreneurship, and the huge importance of British business families in the drive to grow the private sector as we rebuild our way out of the recession.

The awards, organised by third generation family business the Wilson Organisation, include a New Family Business category which I am judging alongside James Timpson (Timpsons) and Annabel Prow (Wilson Organisation). Meeting the shortlisted candidates for the award it was clear that we had a group of highly committed and passionate family business entrepreneurs. Each of the founders shared a strong sense of enthusiasm and the drive to succeed; above all everyone was passionate about serving their customers. Although making a profit is critical to secure the next stage of growth for the business, the path to success is through delivering excellent customer service. A common thread was the need to have clarity of vision and to stay focused, but also to have the flexibility to adapt to the customer’s needs.

Another common thread running through each business was the huge amount of personal effort and financial sacrifice made. The level of hard work that goes into getting early stage ventures going can put pressure on family life - sacrifices are made to ensure the new business gets the required effort. Some also cited the advantage of bringing family members into the business who can offer a wide range of skills; but it was equally important to be honest about individual strengths and weaknesses. Another factor that was cited as key was having excellent communications at all levels; something that becomes even more vital when the pressure is on. Communication will also be the subject at the IFB Regional Roundtable meetings this autumn in Yorkshire and the North-West.

The winner will be announced at a black tie evening reception at the family-owned Thrumpton Hall, just south of Nottingham on Thursday, 11 November.

Family ownership and the life cycle of firms

http://www.ifb.org.uk/ Why are there significantly more large family-owned businesses, as a percentage of all companies in Continental Europe, compared to the UK? A study by Professor Julian Franks, of London Business School, has come up with some fascinating findings.

Professor Franks’ analysis of the top 1000 firms in France, Germany, Italy and the UK showed that 12% of large British firms are family owned compared with 40-45% in the major European economies. Analysing the life cycle of family firms from 1996-2006 showed that only 50% of firms in the UK that were in family ownership at the beginning of the period remained so a decade later, whereas in Germany the figure is 75%.

Image via WikipediaFranks explains that the cause of the UK exception is an ‘outsider’ system where the private benefits of family ownership are smaller, the opportunities for risk diversification are greater, raising equity is more expensive and the market for corporate control is more active. The study also observed that in the UK family ownership was likely to be concentrated in industries with less need for external capital.

The study implies that in the UK owners of large family businesses lean towards the shareholder value model, whereas on the Continent the family business stewardship remains more entrenched and is more favourably dealt with by the markets. The study concludes that family business does bring diversity to a modern economy, and providing owners generally are prevented from abusing their position for private benefit that we should promote a debate in the UK on how to encourage more owners of large family firms to retain control.

I believe that if we are to see lower attrition rates for large family firms we may need new approaches to policy, for example in relation to the protection of minority shareholders. But our culture may also be a significant factor and there needs to be more understanding of the real benefits of the family business stewardship model to the UK economy. This is the topic of new work being conducted at the IFB and a key theme of our national conference next year..watch this space.

A better path in business

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In his book “Good Value”, HSBC Chairman Stephen Green argues that the values of capitalism need reassessment and suggests that businesses should be focused on the pursuit of two distinctive but complementary goals: profitability and sustainability. Shareholder value maximisation in isolation is no longer an acceptable aim. Adam Smith the father of free markets, recognised early on the threat to the public of un-trammelled capitalism writing “the proposal of any new law or regulation that comes from (businessmen) ought to be listened to with great precaution...it comes from an order men who’s interest is never exactly the same with that of the public.” Smith is arguably suggesting that there should be checks and balances for an orderly functioning capitalist society to flourish.

Image via WikipediaGreen also accepts that regulation is necessary to ensure market driven excesses are avoided. He also argues that there has to be a return to more robust values and a “renewed morality” within the corporate world. Individuals are held accountable to the law, but should also be expected to take responsibility for their actions. Green argues that the same applies in companies: boards should take responsibility to ensure that corporate culture supports the pursuit of profitable and sustainable business.

Progressive family firms understand the need to balance their responsibilities to towards their multiple stakeholders, holding to a code of ethical behaviour, while ensuring the prosperity and growth of the enterprise. Responsible ownership of this nature is commonly referred to as “stewardship”.

The IFB has long held that the family business sector recognises the critical importance of stewardship. Looking ahead towards 2011 this issue is high on the association’s agenda and we will be debating during the coming year how family businesses can strengthen their organisations through successful stewardship.

The debate on family business branding

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Attending the 10th IFERA World Family Business Research conference at Lancaster University provided the chance to hear some leading edge thinkers on family business discuss how the sector is creating competitive advantage. One area of potential is the opportunity for family firms to take advantage of family business branding either at the corporate and/or product brand level.

Successful branding relies upon a combination of differentiation and demonstrating added value, and in this context family business provenance can lend good support. Research teams from Jönköping University, Sweden, and Ilinois State University agreed that there are opportunities when developing a firm’s branding strategy to highlight family firm credentials.

The researchers emphasised that the prime attributes for consumer choice will normally relate to good customer service, strong product features etc. It’s worth noting that family firms may have some inherent advantages in this area as the recent IFB/YouGov survey of the UK public showed that 62% already think that family firms often provide better customer service than other types of business.

According to the experts family business branding should therefore best be viewed as accompanying the overall effort to brand the company and its products. The result is that it helps strengthen the reputational capital of a firm - robust reputation capital is an asset that can allow a firm to extract a premium price for goods and services offered.

Successful examples range from huge corporations such as SC Johnson to small family firms such as Darlington and Daughters, both of whom helped illustrate the point that family business branding can lend credence either at the corporate (SC Johnson), or product brand level (Darlington’s). However IMD, who are also researching the subject through testing consumer’s knowledge about brand provenance, caution that the 50% accuracy score of family firms is low. They say this should make us think where and how to position family business corporate brands with the general public.

Values 'define success' says top business leader

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After a varied and highly successful business career IFB guest speaker, Javier Ferran, offered some valuable advice to a gathering of Next Generation members in June, on the importance of building and maintaining family values. Javier spent 20 years in the wine and spirits industry with family firm Martini and Rossi which was acquired by Bacardi Group, where he was President and CEO and is now at private equity firm Lion Capital.

He described the best-run family businesses as a ‘superior model’ because they gave the opportunity for long-term planning and the owners and employees could work in alignment. The complications for family firms tend to start in the transition from a single controlling shareholder to several owners when family emotions can get entangled with the business.

He believed that the most important thing a family business needs to do is define its values. The main role of the family should be to safeguard the values and lead by example. Family councils and advisors are only tools they are not solutions to family business issues. Javier observed: “It’s important to talk about these values all the time and to preach them. So that if someone in the business talks against the values it is immediately obvious and they will be embarrassed at what they have said.”

Trust - a source of competitive advantage

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This week’s IFB national conference has the theme Trust: A source of competitive advantage. Our view is that family businesses are uniquely placed to be at the forefront in the drive to revive trust in UK business.

Progressive family firms place great importance on a clear set of values, such as:

• Entrepreneurship - having a can do attitude

• Respect for People - fostering a strong workplace environment

• Social Responsibility - engaging with local communities

• and Sustainability - taking responsibility for the environment

Combine these values with a sense of stewardship, of being in business to succeed in the long-term and we have created a solid foundation for Trust. And this is of course Trust in the widest sense with all stakeholders; customers, employees, the supply chain, the public and indeed Government.

Knowing how family firms are perceived by the British public is important so the IFB commissioned a YouGov survey– over two thirds of the public recognise the important role family businesses play in economic growth and employment (68%) and almost two-thirds believe family businesses provide better customer service than other types of business (62%) – a key measure of trust in a business.

Sector firms of course, have to deliver strong business performance, but there is a growing and understandable pressure from society to broaden the measurement of success, beyond profits alone.

The benefits of a high trust organisation are immense: highly trusted companies can maintain strong levels of employee morale reducing staff turnover, absenteeism and associated costs. Their brands can achieve high trust status with the consumer. Mars and Beaverbrook the Jewellers are two family firms speaking at the IFB conference on how they are achieving strong trust.

But family firms have their challenges, such as;

• Improving decision-making, both at the owner and the business level through more robust governance

• Ensuring that the transition of ownership between generations is planned and doesn’t disrupt the business

• Making sure there is no glass ceiling for employment opportunities for non-family employees and being open to ideas and innovation

What we see is that the best family firms are embracing these challenges while building and sustaining high trust organisations.

Social enterprise - building the Big Society

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I witnessed social entrepreneurship in action last week when the IFB participated in a Business in the Community event visiting charities and social enterprises in London’s East End. The event showed how business can bring benefit to their own organisations, as well as wider society, by getting involved in these activities.

Social entrepreneurs are people who use their entrepreneurial can-do approach and creative mind to set up organisations that deliver social or environmental benefits and help change lives and society for the better. And among the enterprises I saw in the Seeing is Believing programme was Shepresa that offers support to Albanian’s who have fled violence or persecution to seek asylum in our country. There was also Bikeworks, in Tower Hamlets, which provides a range of cycling related services, including vocational training for people from homeless and other challenging backgrounds.

The leaders of the organisations are alumni of the School for Social Entrepreneurs (SSE) in Bethnall Green, an organisation at the forefront of this sector in terms of education. We saw first-hand how businesses can engage in the work that SSE does developing leadership and other business skills in budding social entrepreneurs.

This is all about putting, what David Cameron called, the Big Society into action - the Government has made a specific commitment to encourage social enterprises. There is a huge role for business to play, working with social enterprise to bring benefits back to our organisations through greater employee satisfaction and learning as well as strengthening social capital generally.

Family businesses can get involved in supporting social enterprise in a number of ways including investing in it and including it in the firm’s supply chain. There are also ways of involving employees, including offering opportunities for secondments, or providing mentoring to social entrepreneurs, as well as pro bono advice and expertise.

The virtues of long-term business planning

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French author and entrepreneur Jean-Louis Servan-Schreiber writes in a new book Trop Vite! (Too Fast, Albin Michel, 2010) that our world has become too short-term. Horizons have shrunk in every aspect of society whether it’s politics, consumer behaviour, or in business as the pace we live at has accelerated. The consequence is that the long-term is pushed into the shadows - we live for today.

Twenty years ago Michael T. Jacobs predicted the shift to short termism in business when he wrote in Short-Term America that the US would not be able to retain leadership if it continued to focus on quarterly results. Since the economic crisis, siren voices around the world have started to denounce short-termism and its negative consequences. Fresh research from the Hudson Center for High Performance concluded that short term business measures taken to meet performance targets fail to produce lasting results.

Servan-Schreiber, also noting the negative impact that the short term pursuit of shareholder value can have on companies sets out some principles for rebuilding a longer-term focus. He advocates progressive human relations policies that reflect the company’s values and provide genuine development opportunities for employees. A commitment to training employees helps them develop their talent, leads to higher levels of motivation and a greater sense of purpose.

Family-owned businesses are often regarded as being able to take the long view and are keenly aware of the importance of handing their firm on to the next generation in a healthy state. They often consider all their stakeholders, not just a selected few, and make employee motivation a priority. Now we are beginning to see non-family firms following this lead, with the best balancing the short term imperatives of performance and survival, with a focus on a long-term vision, and a genuine sense of stewardship that takes into consideration the interest of all stakeholders.

Election Puts the Spotlight on Social Capital

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As the UK general election nears, politicians have been seen at leading family firms for eye-catching picture opportunities, but their visits are not down to chance. During campaigning David Cameron made speeches at Fuller’s Brewery, in London, and Warburtons the breadmaker, in Bolton, while David Miliband tucked into a pork pie at MI Dickson, on Tyneside. No doubt both parties hoped for a positive response from the public by associating with these long-established UK businesses. These firms, all members of the Institute for Family Business, also share some other enviable qualities in the politician’s eyes as they are:

• Successful: their brands are highly regarded by consumers in their respective markets

• Good places to work: their success is driven by motivated and empowered work forces

• Caring about the community: each organisation cares about their local communities

These visits have put the spotlight on the importance of social capital in today’s business world. Successful family businesses have strong financial and other assets, but also at their best have solid foundations based on a strong set of corporate values.

In summary, they are beacons for UK plc and living evidence that family firms can lead the way, through long-term stewardship and stability, to deliver a valuable contribution to the nation’s wealth.

Building greater trust in our businesses and ensuring that social capital is valued strongly alongside financial and other capital will help secure a more sustainable economy, counterbalancing the element of shorter term capitalism that exists in a free market economy such as ours. Family firms add diversity to our economy and have a big role to play in securing our prosperity.

Family values and shareholder value

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There is an even greater sense of anticipation now for the speech of CBI director-general Richard Lambert at the Institute for Family Business National Conference, in June, following the publicity surrounding his recent speech at the Royal Society of Arts. In comments that made the lead story in the Financial Times he explained how the relentless pursuit of shareholder value has helped to undermine the reputation of business. Richard will be tackling this question head on at our conference and will explore how family firms can develop trust as a source of competitive advantage.

His thesis, put forward at the RSA, is that the irresistible drive to reduce costs at any price has fractured the relationship between companies and their employees and local communities. An open capital market for control generating pressure in the form of hostile takeovers has further fuelled the trend. Another driver is excessive levels of high octane debt piled onto balance sheets. Crowning it all in the public’s eye is the widening pay disparity between top earners and the shop floor which has created a gulf between the haves and the have-nots in society.

Are family businesses any different? Does long-term stewardship which characterises the approach of much of the family business sector make for more moderate outcomes where employees have greater satisfaction at work and communities are not left abandoned? The answer is that at their best family firms can achieve this, but it’s not automatically the case. Every firm faces the relentless pressure of globalisation; family-owned factories have been shut and production has been moved offshore. But family business owners often have strong values which they wear on their sleeves and these set the tone for corporate behaviour.

To be the employer of choice in a town, or region, the best family firms create high trust organisations where individuals come to work feeling valued. They invest above and beyond the strict minimum that shareholder value principles would dictate because they want to be best in the business. Profit maximisation is not their sole mantra. Owners balance the requirements of the company for reinvestment with their expectations for liquidity. While the sector does face many challenges family firms can be role models by valuing stewardship above shareholder value.

Learning from Swedish enterprise

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Some thoughts after returning from a fascinating conference, in Stockholm, which looked at how economic growth can be encouraged by improving transfers of ownership and through entrepreneurship. At a plenary session, attended by the Swedish State Secretary for Enterprise, Jöran Hägglund, I spoke on behalf of the IFB and it was good to hear about his government’s commitment to taxation and other legislation that supports the transfer of business ownership - unfettered by taxes that damage business prospects. It will be useful to cite this Swedish example in the IFB’s ongoing representation work to ensure that Westminster policymakers address the needs of UK family businesses. One alarming statistic that I quoted, was that approximately 100,000 businesses in Britain a year could be affected by business transfer failure.

The overwhelming message from the conference was that prosperity and employment can only truly be spurred on by embedding a national culture of entrepreneurship. From China to India the emerging economies have embraced this approach throwing down the gauntlet to the west. The conference heard how Europe has an uneven record in embracing free market capitalism, but it was encouraging to see how much attitudes had changed in Sweden, where entrepreneurs making money were increasingly seen as positive role models.

Family business dominates the privately owned SME sector in Europe, and holds an important place as far as larger firms are concerned. It is therefore right to demand that our sector plays a key role in driving entrepreneurship and innovation, to rebuild our economic strength. But with 1 in 4 owners of companies in Europe approaching retirement age, a new wave of owner-managers with entrepreneurial instincts must be encouraged to take over the reins. The best of this new generation of wealth creators combine passion, skill and determination; where they take over an existing organisation they challenge the status quo while retaining the best of the values from the outgoing owners. These entrepreneurs have a lot at stake, resulting in strong commitment – it is often a matter of survival. Certainly the senior generation, if they have not already done so, should be discussing options for succession and the future ownership of their business as a matter of urgency.

Ingenious Britain

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Sir James Dyson’s Ingenious Britain report has given a boost to the debate about the importance of entrepreneurship in rebuilding our nation’s economic strength. It focuses the spotlight away from UK plc and onto the vital role that new business activity and spin-offs have in boosting technological innovation, design and employment.

There is also a broader national debate taking place about what can be done to encourage entrepreneurship in our society, in the widest sense of the word. A new group, Enterprise UK, has been formed, founded by IoD, CBI, FSB and BCC, to collect practical suggestions that any Government could use to promote and support entrepreneurship - the ideas could also be used by businesses, universities, schools and individuals. The Institute for Family Business (IFB) will be sharing its views on this important subject with Enterprise UK.

Entrepreneurship is one of the key driving forces of the family business sector. Indeed business families are prime breeding ground for tomorrow’s entrepreneurs. The Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) examined a few years ago the background of entrepreneurs starting new business activities, and concluded that family firms are an important source of young entrepreneurs. With 3 million family firms in the UK we have in the heart of our economy a latent talent pool of family business entrepreneurs.

What can we do to unleash the entrepreneurial spirit of our nation’s business families? Sir James Dyson cites education, skills and deregulation as critical success factors. The IFB agrees with this list, but also believes that values are at the heart of the creating foundations for successful entrepreneurship. Determination, courage and hard work are values that parents can instil into the next generation. By fostering these values the nation’s business families are playing a vital role in creating tomorrow’s enterprising Britain.
http://realbusiness.co.uk/leadership/dyson_no_magic_bullets

Family businesses holding their own

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At a recent London School of Economics meeting, which I chaired, a member of one of Europe’s leading family businesses saw a positive outlook for the sector. In a debate with students on whether family businesses can hold their own in today’s economy Dr H.C. August Oetker, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Oetker KG, the Germany-based diversified family company, rejected as outdated the stereotype images of a sector plagued by nepotism, lack of scale and inflexibility.

Dr Oetker argued that the modern family business is often engaged in a David against Goliath battle and has three main advantages:

• Stability - a conservative policy in terms of financing the business, eschewing excessive risk and debt investing the family’s own capital

• Security - more predictability in terms of strategic approach; often generating greater employee trust and loyalty

• Long-termism - where the payback horizon on investments may often be measured in decades not years

But there are risks such as the resistance to change, particularly in making decisions on employment issues that impact the workforce. Family business boards have to address the dilemma of balancing an instinct towards social responsibility while driving business performance.

The Oetker formula - With revenues of more than 9.2 billion euros, the group’s formula for success is driven by a high degree of reinvestment, paying shareholders a modest dividend each year. Risks have been balanced through a process of diversification and key divisions include the Hamburg Süd shipping group, Dr. Oetker branded food products and a focus on alcoholic beverages.

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