A · ADAPTATION & ALIGNMENT
“We keep planning, but nothing changes.”
The plan exists: in a meeting, a document or someone’s head. But it never becomes action. Here is how family business planning turns into things that actually happen.
Confidential. Nothing is shared with other family members without your permission.
Does this sound like your family?
You have talked about succession, drafted a will, maybe even paid for a report. Then life got busy, the business needed attention, and the plan sat in a drawer.
Often the lawyer, the accountant, the banker and the insurance advisor are each working on a piece of it, but nobody is joining the pieces up.
You might also be saying:
- “Our lawyer, accountant and banker never talk to each other.”
- “We did a plan years ago. I don’t know where it is.”
- “Things have changed since we made the plan.”
What it’s costing you
- Money spent on advice that never gets used.
- Documents that contradict each other, such as a will that doesn’t match the shareholder agreement.
- A plan written for a business and a family that no longer exist.
- When a crisis comes, there is no plan to follow.
What would help
- One plan, with owners and dates, so every action has someone responsible for it.
- A joined-up advisory team. I work with your lawyer, accountant, banker and insurance advisor so their advice fits together.
- Regular reviews, so the plan changes when your family and business do.
- Small first steps that build momentum, rather than a perfect plan that never starts.
What families say
The first time we saw the LEGACY DNA, we knew we really underestimated the amount of grey area that we overlooked. It is an ongoing process, but we feel more secure having the expertise to help us work through the challenges in our business and in our family.
First-generation family business moving to the second generation
Questions about family business planning
Why do family business plans stall?
Usually because nobody owns the next step, the advisors are working separately, or the plan asked the family to agree on something they hadn’t really settled. Each of these can be fixed.
How often should a family business plan be reviewed?
At least once a year, and whenever something significant changes: a birth, a death, a marriage, a divorce, a new venture or a sale.
Can you work with our existing advisors?
Yes. Your lawyer, accountant, banker and insurance advisor each hold part of the picture, and the plan works best when their advice fits together.
Where this fits in the LEGACY DNA
Family business planning sits under A · Adaptation & Alignment in the LEGACY DNA: are your plans becoming action? The free Legacy DNA check shows where your family business stands on it, alongside the other five dimensions.
I cover this in more depth in my book, The Seven Domains of the Family Business.
What happens next
- Take the free Legacy DNA check. About 10 minutes, with an instant read on where your family business stands.
- Have a confidential conversation. We talk through what’s really going on. You’ll know the fee before any paid work begins.
- Get your plan. The full Legacy DNA Diagnostic, then the documents and structures it points to.
Confidential. Nothing is shared with other family members without your permission.