1. University of Adelaide Business School
Advisor Stream Panel
Bruce Hatcher
Richard Owens, OAM
Michael Perkins
Mark Voeller
Facilitated by
Jill Thomas
University of Adelaide Business School

2. Ownership Family Business
Three Circle Model
Taguiri & Davis (1992)
Ownership
Family
Business

3. How Consultants Typically Enter the Systems
Family System
Family Therapists
Psychologists
Business Management & Leadership System
Business Consultants
OD consultants
Ownership / Governance System
Estate Planners
Accountants
Lawyers
Estate
Planning
This model shows where we tend to enter the system – i.e. I tend to enter in the Business management and leadership system. Larry tends to enter in the ownership/governance system. Some of you may tend to enter in the family system.
As an advisor, you need to know what you know and know what you don’t know. Know when to refer to another advisor. i.e. I know enough about law to make sure my clients have updated their estate plans to reflect the succession plan we have developed, but I don’t write the documents!
Unity Planning
Succession
Planning

4. The Systems Ownership Family Business Ownership / Governance System
Values /Vision
Legal Structure
Ownership Transfer
Board
Family System
Roles & Relationships
Family Values
Myths / Mores
Conflict Resolution
Clarity of Communication
As advisors, what are the various “things” we work on in each system?
Since this is a system, what happens if we only look at ONE of the circles?
Ripple effect
Unintended consequences
SO…. What should you do if your expertise is Strategic Planning?
When I work with a business on its strategic plans, I have to recognize that the strategic plan will impact other parts of the family business and other circles could impact the success of the strategic plan.
Educate my clients about those impacts
Bring in other team members?
Business Management & Leadership System
Mission & Strategy
Culture of Organization
Org Structure
Compensation System
Decision-making Process

5. The Core Disciplines Legal Financial Management Science
Behavioral Science
Every family business has an existing system, structure and process they used to do their work.
By system, we mean the sum of the structures, processes and behavioral dynamics through which the work gets done.
By structures, we mean the formal and informal, written and unwritten arrangements used (implicitly or explicitly) to get the work done.
By processes, we mean the patterns of behavior, or the step-by-step ways, that the work is accomplished—the means to the ends. That is, decisions are made; information is gathered, organized, shared and used; responsibilities are delineated; authority is delegated; and accountability is provided.
Family business consulting involves helping owners assess whether their current system, structure and process is meeting their values, needs and goals.
If the current system, structure and process meet their values, needs and goals: great.
If they don’t—then family business consultants help those owners (i) determine what changes are needed, (ii) develop a transition plan addressing those changes, (iii) implement the plan, and (iv) evaluate the changes.
FFI identified four “core disciplines” as being central to family business consulting; that is, helping family assess and make changes to their current system, structure and process:
Legal
Financial
Management Science
Behavioural Science

6. Differing Perceptual Filters: The Core Disciplines
Ownership
Financial
Management
Individual
Business Mgt.
Family
Legal.
The system, structures and process used to make decisions (whether the current system or any changes made to the system) has legal implications.
The legal system is societal’s way of enforcing agreements and resolving disputes if the individuals don’t agree otherwise.
Financial. The system, structures and process used to make decision involves:
Identifying, recording and verifying financial data (income, expenses, equity, assets, liabilities—accounting),
determining how much cash is needed by the owners and business and how to invest that cash (e.g. financial planning, investment advisers),
obtaining and maintaining access to cash (e.g. banking, investment capital, business brokers), and
making sure cash is available in a catastrophic situation (death, natural disaster, fraud—insurance).
Management Science. Family business consulting involves assessing and possibly making changes to the current system and structures used to get the work done (e.g. organizational development, communication, and planning; management development, communication and planning; etc.)
Behavioural Science. Family business consulting involves assessing and possibly making changes to the current system, process and patterns of behavior, or the step-by-step ways, that the work is accomplished.
Important items to note:
Family businesses involves all of these disciplines in some way.
Family business consulting requires assessing:
which of these disciplines are involved in the work;
what of those disciplines you can provide as a professional; and
what of those disciplines need to be provided by someone else.
Family business consulting involves helping the owners and business coordinate the disciplines needed to
understand their current system, structure and process;
identify what of their current arrangements work or don’t work;
develop a plan to make the changes needed to accomplish the values, needs and goals of the owners and the business; and
help implement the plan.
Behavioral
Legal

7. What type of knowledge base is needed for interdisciplinary consulting?
Four Areas of Professional Services
For
Family Businesses and Enterprise Families
Management
Science
Finance
Legal
Behavioral Science
Awareness
Technician
Proficiency Level of Professionals

8. MODELS OF TEAMS
Consulting (Interdisciplinary) Teams—a pre‐existing team that is hired by the client
Collaborative (Multidisciplinary) Team—advisors from different disciplines who meet in a study group forum, get to know each other’s work, and bring one another into client situations on an as‐needed basis or in a “shadow” consulting function.
Accidental—advisors who meet and connect only through the client, coordinate their efforts, only in their work with that particular client
Dysfunctional—advisors unknown to one another; even if working with the same client they do so with no coordination

9. Session 3: Theoretical Concepts and Models
The Core Disciplines
Content vs. Process Consulting
Interdisciplinary Consulting

10. How You Proceed: Distinguish Content vs. Process
Expert Transactional Final reports Clients follow up on their own Shorter timeframe
Curious Developing systems Outline of recommendations for discussion Consultant facilitates follow-up Longer timeframe
Content1 Consulting
Process Consulting
Content Consulting and Process Consulting is a way to describe how a professional works with family business clients.
Content Consulting tend to:
Have governmental laws and rules that need to be considered.
Emphasize facts, concrete goals and tangible results.
Use structures, tools, and techniques to provide results for the client (estate plan, business plan, buy-sell agreement, financial plan, etc.)
Process Consulting tend to:
Have laws and rules of personal dynamics that need to be considered.
Emphasize communication, relationships, and personal dynamics.
Use the individuals involved to develop their goals and solutions.
Points to make:
Both styles of consulting has its place in family business consulting.
And usually both have their place at the same time, which makes it hard. That is,
certain laws have to be followed, the family need results, and there are limited techniques that are available to comply with the law and provide the results, and
personal styles and dynamics can’t be ignored or the tools put in place will break down.
Consider what style you best represent. Consider what other style might be needed to do what the owners want you to do.
1Technical

11. How You Proceed: Consider Multi-disciplinary Approach
Finance
Content
consulting
Accounting
Insurance
Process
consulting
Ownership
Family
Business
Advisors
Strategic
Planning
Legal
So how do you determine what other professionals might be needed and who that other person is.?
Clearly there are a lot of different type of professionals to choose from. Reference the Slide.
How to answer the question of what other professional might be needed.
Remember what family business consulting consists of:
“helping owners assess whether their current system, structure and process is meeting their values, needs and goals, and, if not, helping those owners (i) determine what changes are needed, (ii) develop a transition plan addressing those changes, (iii) implement the plan, and (iv) evaluate the changes.
So you will need to know the following about the owners and the business:
How the current system, structure and process works;
What about the current arrangements the owners want to keep and change;
How to change the current arrangement to deliver on the changes the owners want to change and what they want to keep;
What has to happen to implement any changes;
How to develop a plan to implement the changes; and
How to implement the plan.
You also need to know the following about you and other professionals:
What professional knowledge, skills and experience is needed to do the above?
What of this can I do, do I want to do, and will I do?
If there something is needed and I don’t provide it, where do I find it?
Duration
11:45-12:00
Business
Succession
Industrial psychology
Organizational Transformation
Organizational Development