by Jane Beddall on July 21, 2012
Paul Sullivan’s New York Times Wealth Matters column on July 7, 2012 was titled “In an Unusual Tax Year, the Wealthy Turn to Partnerships.” He described how the use of family limited partnerships is typically very limited, but the current tax situation makes them popular right now. Experts caution, however, that using these or similar tools to bind a family together can be a bad idea. As Jason Cain, of the family wealth group at Credit Suisse Private Bank, phrased it: “‘Families should be together because they want to be together, not because Grandpa decided there was going to be a family investment that could be never be liquidated and everyone should stay together.’”
For tax reasons or to promote idealized hopes about family harmony, families often create ties that bind. Frequently, these ties cause pain and conflict. Careful thought should precede creation of these ties. Failing that, families in conflict should try to address disputes sooner rather than later. In either case, facilitated family meetings or family wealth mediation can help.
by Jane Beddall on February 14, 2012
Around Valentine’s Day we hear a lot about romantic love.
But family love is important, too, and a family break-up can be just as tragic as a couple’s. Sometimes it’s even worse.
Family mediation among adult siblings, between parent and child, or in some combination can prevent or heal family heartbreak. A facilitated family meeting can help loved ones address family conflict in a productive manner.
by Jane Beddall on December 30, 2010
As 2010 draws to a close, year-end reviews become popular.
- We’re all told to take a cold, hard look at where we are and where we need to go.
- Businesses are encouraged to examine where they can make marginal changes to improve their bottom line.
- Individuals are urged to pick one, small change that they can implement to reduce stress and enjoy life more.
What about the big picture: the essential things you already know you must do, but somehow don’t get done?
- You know that your family business needs to create a succession plan, but you don’t know how to start the discussion, in the family or in the business.
- You know that you need to have a conversation with your family about your estate planning priorities and decisions.
- You know that you need to talk with your elderly parents about challenging topics related to aging.
I can help you with these conversations. Ask me how. Always a complimentary, confidential, initial consultation.
by Jane Beddall on November 25, 2010
It’s easy to Talk the Talk about Thanksgiving and family:
“I am so thankful for my family.”
“I love my family and I would do anything for them.”
“Family comes first.”
But do you Walk the Walk?
Have you had those important conversations about estate planning?
Have your parents told you their wishes about end-of-life care?
Have you told your children your wishes?
I can help you to Walk the Walk and show your family how grateful you are for them.
I can help you have those difficult, but essential, conversations.
Contact me for a free and confidential consultation.
by Jane Beddall on November 11, 2009
Family businesses possess great strengths — and potentially devastating weaknesses. One weakness involves the challenge of planning for a day when some or all family members leave the business.
On November 1, 2009, the New York Times ran an article by Charles V. Bagli titled “Flipping a Coin, Dividing an Empire.” In it, he described the buy-out agreement of three Elghanayan brothers to divide up a $3 billion real estate empire built over four decades. Mr. Bagli captured the situation in a nutshell: “Compared with property breakups of some other New York real estate families — often long, messy affairs replete with blood feuds, lawsuits and ugly recriminations — the Elghanayan brothers’ split has been relatively swift, smooth, and secretive.”
The brothers had drawn up a detailed partnership agreement after they were forced, twenty years ago, to resort to binding arbitration (with their father serving as arbitrator) to resolve a family business conflict when a fourth brother left the family business. The process they created involved a coin toss, a reverse auction, and other details based on game theory principles.
Even that detailed process proceeded with horse-trading, some tension, and some sadness. But, by planning ahead and creating a process that they understood and freely adopted, the brothers did some valuable conflict management. They reduced the scope and severity of a potential family wealth conflict and then, when the agreement was needed, they had a far easier conflict to resolve. One that they could put to rest without destroying their wealth, their company, or their family.
by Jane Beddall on July 31, 2009
Last week’s state-wide conference for women business owners brought together more than 100 Connecticut women business owners. Full marks go to the Connecticut Permanent Commission on the Status of Women for all of the leg work and to the National Association of Women Business Owners for the funding.
I had the pleasure of co-presenting a workshop on “Smooth Business Transitions” with dynamic attorney (and business owner) Diana Bartolotta. Diana is based on Main Street in Middletown as principal attorney at her law firm, B-law, LLC.
We had an engaged group of women in our workshop who had questions, suggestions, and insights that complemented our presentation and reflected the wisdom of the group.
by Jane Beddall on July 20, 2009
On Friday, July 24, 2009, I will be co-presenting a workshop on “Smooth Business Transitions” at a conference for Connecticut women business owners. The conference, “Transition Your Business Through Challenge”, is sponsored by the State of Connecticut Permanent Commission on the Status of Women (PCSW) and the National Association of Women Business Owners.
My role is raising some questions about planning ahead for your business and its structure for the time that you are ready to (or must) make a change in ownership. Other workshops will cover smaller transitions, such as partnering with another business, expanding your understanding of Quickbooks, expansion through access to capital, etc. The PCSW website has more info: http://www.cga.ct.gov/PCSW/
Planning ahead for business transitions, especially in family businesses, is essential to minimize potential conflicts.
by Jane Beddall on June 27, 2009
The New York Times published an article on June 23 by Bill Vlasic titled “Family Loyalty Anchors Ford in Risky Times”. The article discussed some of the challenging times that the Ford family business has faced, along with other auto makers, especially in recent years and months. Last time I wrote about the regular family meetings that help the Ford family manage conflict.
The second point the article made about the Ford family’s success in managing conflict involves how the family deals with disagreements. Any organization will face disagreements if it is growing and evolving. The key to success often turns on just how the organization deals with these inevitable frictions.
In 2007, a few Ford family members tried to hire a Wall Street firm “to advise them on long-term strategy — including possible mergers or even a sale.” Other family members opposed the idea. The family voted down the proposal. It’s the next step that is essential: “unwavering support once decisions are made.” By not trying to undermine a decision that has been made, but instead rallying around it, a family acts to help itself and its business.
by Jane Beddall on June 27, 2009
The New York Times published an article on June 23 by Bill Vlasic titled “Family Loyalty Anchors Ford in Risky Times”. The article discussed some of the challenging times that the Ford family business has faced, along with other auto makers, especially in recent years and months. As the piece noted, tough times have “led to splits in other famous business families like the Bancrofts who owned Dow Jones until they sold it to the News Corporation of Rupert Murdoch.” (Type “Bancrofts” into the search bar to find earlier comments about that situation.)
Two points are noted in the article which help preserve the Ford family and its family business.
First, the family has been meeting every three months, in good times and bad, for the last twenty years. The quarterly meetings now include up to 35 family members. By maintaining a schedule of regular and frequent family meetings, the family has created a forum for discussions that both ensures that family members have a steady working relationship and allows challenges to be faced before they escalate even further.
A few words about the second point next time.
by Jane Beddall on January 31, 2008
The keynote speaker at last week’s Connecticut Business and Industry Association and UConn Family Business Program Conference was Stew Leonard, Jr. He discussed the challenges and joys of the family business, which had grown from milk trucks delivering door to door all the way to busy supermarkets in several locations. He talked about the G-1 generation (his parents), G-2 (the adult siblings), and G-3 (their teenage children) and how the family worked on a regular basis with a family business consultant. The family has even created its own guidebook of principles important to success of the business and the family.
One of his most interesting points involved communication: the need to keep it open in order to keep everyone in the loop. The game of “Telephone”, where a message works its way down the line and around a circle, is all about the good fun in the twists and turns the original message makes as it moves from one person to another. But a wildly distorted original message that secretly moves through a family or business isn’t fun — it’s a sure invitation for conflict.