In family businesses, the wisdom of elders often serves as the guiding light for younger generations. These "lions in winter" – the experienced family members who have weathered business cycles and family challenges – play a crucial role in mentoring and preparing the next generation for leadership roles.
The transition from active leadership to advisory roles requires careful planning and a willingness to let go while maintaining influence. Elders must balance their desire to protect the family legacy with the need to allow new leaders to make their own decisions and learn from their experiences.
Effective elder guidance involves more than just sharing business knowledge; it encompasses passing down family values, cultural traditions, and the unwritten rules that have sustained the business through generations. This tacit knowledge, accumulated over decades, is often more valuable than formal education or external expertise.
However, the role of elders must evolve as the business grows and the family expands. What worked in a small, founder-led business may not be appropriate for a multi-generational enterprise with diverse stakeholders. Elders must adapt their guidance style to accommodate changing family dynamics and business needs.
The key to successful elder guidance lies in creating structured mentorship programs that formalize the knowledge transfer process while maintaining the personal touch that makes family businesses unique. This might include regular family meetings, formal training sessions, or shadowing opportunities for younger family members.
Consider This: How do the elders in your family business currently share their wisdom with younger generations? What formal or informal mentorship structures exist in your organization? How do you balance the need for elder guidance with the autonomy required for next-generation leaders to develop their own style?
The original article was published in Lions in the Winter: How Elders Guide Rising Generations - David Werdiger
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A successful family advisor, business strategist, entrepreneur, and thought leader with a proven track record of achievement in driving innovation and growth for entrepreneurial endeavours and not-for-profit organisations.
David's experience includes founding and building multiple businesses from the ground up, and expanding and leading operations into new markets. He is recognised by colleagues as a creative problem-solver and strategist with expertise in coming up with ideas and creating new ways of improving business, strategy, operations, and results.
As a business and family advisor, he provides clients with expert business advice on intergenerational business and wealth transition, advancing entrepreneurial efforts, setting up good governance, improving financial and operational results, and strategic direction. He is also a seasoned program leader with an aptitude for providing governance in corporate and philanthropic pursuits with a strong focus on culturally focused non-profits.