{"id":1643,"date":"2025-06-04T08:05:31","date_gmt":"2025-06-04T06:05:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.iese.edu\/family-business\/?p=1643"},"modified":"2025-09-29T21:05:00","modified_gmt":"2025-09-29T19:05:00","slug":"family-as-a-value-in-family-business","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.iese.edu\/family-business\/2025\/family-as-a-value-in-family-business\/","title":{"rendered":"Family as a value in family business"},"content":{"rendered":"

When I meet a business family, I usually start by asking about their values<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

With one notable exception, when my query was answered with a portfolio of stock market investments\u2013naturally I had to redirect the conversation\u2013most open up by sharing their personal values and those they hold as a family<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

In my dealings with successful, multigenerational family businesses over the years, one thing stands out: in addition to citing recurring values such as honesty and hard work, they often mention family as a value in itself<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

A sense of belonging, identity and emotional security<\/span><\/strong><\/h2>\n

Delving further, family <\/em>constitutes a broader dimension<\/strong> for these collectives, beyond blood ties and the daily interactions of family life.<\/p>\n

They give family an institutional character grounded in a sense of belonging, identity and emotional security<\/strong>, while embracing values such as affection, solidarity, respect and responsibility. As the U.S. poet Haniel Long observed:<\/p>\n

\n

\u201cSo much of what is best in us is bound up in our love of family, that it remains the measure of our stability because it measures our sense of loyalty. All other pacts of love or fear derive from it and are modeled upon it.\u201d<\/em><\/h4>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Family relations founded on affection<\/span><\/strong><\/h2>\n

Successful business families dedicate significant time and resources to supporting their members and taking care of each other, doing their utmost to ensure high-quality interpersonal relationships<\/strong> based on warmth and affection.<\/p>\n

They view affection as the<\/strong> crux of a solid family<\/strong> and meritocracy as the key to a prosperous business<\/strong>\u2013and they manage to strike a balance between the two.<\/p>\n

While every family is unique, they agree upon implicit rules and mechanisms<\/strong> to imbue their organization and leadership with a singular identity, firm commitment and long-term orientation.<\/p>\n

Family culture, the foundation of corporate culture<\/span><\/strong><\/h2>\n

When conducting SWOT analyses of these entrepreneurial families, we can identify and position the family itself as a core strength and opportunity<\/strong> for their businesses.<\/p>\n

In this regard, family culture permeates the culture of family businesses<\/strong>, creating stable work environments, relationships based on trust and respect and management practices that pursue both financial objectives and the human and social well-being<\/strong> of employees, communities and other key stakeholders.<\/p>\n

These families, viewed as a value, are far more than a social construct<\/strong>: they are the foundation upon which a person\u2019s character is built. In the case of business families, their influence has an expansive ripple effect<\/strong>, promoting corporate continuity and collective well-being across generations.<\/p>\n

With these considerations in mind, we should do everything possible to bolster business families from both internally and externally as an investment that pays long-term dividends<\/strong> in education, solidarity and progress.<\/p>\n

Homepage image: Liv Bruce<\/a> on Unsplash<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

When I meet a business family, I usually start by asking about their values. With one notable exception, when my query was answered with a portfolio of stock market investments\u2013naturally I had to redirect the conversation\u2013most open up by sharing their personal values and those they hold as a family. In my dealings with successful, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":818,"featured_media":1644,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[12,981],"tags":[451,119730,119667],"class_list":["post-1643","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-family","category-leadership","tag-corporate-culture","tag-family-as-a-value","tag-family-values","megacategoria-mc-family-business"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t