University-run advice sessions to help family businesses think outside the box

A series of breakfast advice sessions designed to help family-run businesses grow and be sustainable over generations has been organised by Coventry University’s Institute for Applied Entrepreneurship (IAE).

The 2-hour sessions, which are being supported by Wright Hassall Solicitors and Harrison Beale & Owen financial advisors, builds on the success of last year’s events and will be hosted at Wright Hassall’s offices on Olympus Avenue, Leamington Spa, CV34 6BF.

The first session, Growing Family Wealth through Open Innovation, takes place this week and aims to help family businesses manage their real family wealth more effectively through collaborative processes such as open innovation.

This can assist family businesses to combine their resources with those of other companies to make sure that it carries on building a legacy over generations.  The session will assist with succession planning, communication with the family and family retreats.

On Wednesday 30th November (8am–10am) the second session, Competing on the Global Market as a Family Business, will explore how recent changes to the world’s economic landscape are providing new challenges to all companies.

The session highlights the most effective ways for family businesses to participate in a global marketplace without sacrificing their family business culture. Topics will include current trends in the international markets, where to look for opportunities and how to structure the family business to exploit these opportunities.

Dr Gideon Maas, Director of the IAE at Coventry University, has over fifteen years experience in this field and will be presenting both sessions.

Dr Maas said:

Family businesses are important in forming a strong economic basis. However, like any other business, family businesses need to re-discover how to manage the future in an innovative manner. That calls for new ways at looking at how they are currently innovating and how to structure family wealth to last over generations.

These workshops will focus on these important elements and is applicable to existing family businesses on the one side as well as husband and wife teams on the other side – the latter often being the beginning phases of a strong family business.

Each session costs £10 per person and anyone interested in attending should contact Lisa Drummond on 0797 498 4189 or e-mail Ldrummond@cad.coventry.ac.uk.