"This book is a must read for business families in their plans to transfer to the next generation of management, operation and ownership of their businesses. It provides real-world examples of these transitions and highlights the pitfalls and learning associated with succession planning"

Based on our experience, most families enduring these challenges tend to think they are experiencing them alone. In reality, most family business owners experience similar highs and lows and there is comfort to be taken from drawing on the experiences of others and seeing how problems get solved – often through a process of trial and error.

This book has two goals – first, to give families a means of sharing the stories of both their challenges and their successes in dealing with the transition of their businesses. Second, it is our goal at BMO to provide some insight into the best practices that families have adopted to help move forward in the succession planning process.

Excerpt from the Book:

The Best Laid Plans

My father really wrestled with some of his succession planning decisions. Towards the end, he also changed his mind a lot about his estate planning decisions. I think he was under the misconception that fair means equal but, in reality, equal doesn’t always mean fair. By giving all of us shareholders an equal voice he made it very hard for me to be in charge. In the context of running a business, the last thing you need to worry about is having to ask non-active owners what they think about every little decision. Being micromanaged did not work very well from either a strategic or personal perspective. When you are the one calling the shots day in and day out, the last thing you want is people questioning your decisions. Under the terms of our shareholders’ agreement I didn’t have effective control.

Adviser Comments

Gord’s succession experience demonstrates the importance of looking ahead and putting procedures in place that can handle any number of possible outcomes. Taking this lesson to heart, Gord and his siblings are already considering how they will successfully manage to transfer their wealth and family values to their children.