FBN Nordic webinar 2023

Thank you FBN Denmark – Family Business Network for inviting us to talk family governance at your FBN Nordic webinar just now.

It was great to be with old colleagues and family business owners from across Norther Europe.

Thank you to everyone for their active participation and a great discussion.

Governance is a vast topic and there is always more to discuss, always new nuances to uncover and always more to learn.

Here are two take aways from audience I’ll be reflecting on.

– Have patience when you develop your governance structure. Even if people are super keen to participate, they may not always have the time, or as much time as they would like, to dedicate to family meetings.

– Develop a shared vocabulary or language about the family business and your ownership so it’s easier to have discussions as owners.
It can come from reading the same book, for instance.

Some of my own reflections on governance are:

– Governance isn’t easy but if we don’t talk about it, it becomes even harder.
– It’s worth paying attention to how we communicate with each other. Communication can make the difference between well-functioning governance and less well-functioning governance.
– Sometimes we have to let go of assumptions and listen more than we talk.
– Agreeing on things on paper is harder than having a discussion where we think we all agree.
The family’s voice is important. Governance is a tool to ensuring it’s heard.