LETTER FROM THE US
Muntz believed longevity, both
LIVE LONGER AND PROSPER
A
mericans are living longer. Forty years ago, average life expectancy was 73.5. Today the average US citizen can expect to blow out candles on their 79th birthday.
Even living to 100 was once consigned to science
fiction. No more. Indeed, getting long in the tooth has caught
the eye of finance wonks at UBS, the Swiss bank, whose latest report probes investment intentions of would-be centenarians. Longevity is already having a significant impact on
family firms. Nowadays it is not uncommon to have three generations working under the same roof. That, says Jennifer Muntz, executive director of
Family Business Network North America, can be a double-edged sword. “It can create conflict,” she cautions. “But there is an opportunity for real innovation because of it.”
personal and enterprise, demands change, and jobs were often suited to younger, more innovative generations. “Millennials are bringing that
to table. They want to make a major impact in terms of social and environmental changes.” As Boomers move to the shadows,
in mentoring or advisory board roles, Gen Xers and millennials are taking on greater responsibility managing their family fortunes. As long as family firms have existed so have multigenerational struggles. Yet the old guard has much to offer, not just in transition advice, but in growth opportunities. Olivier de Richoufftz, president of
Business Families Foundation, says a perennial source of friction is the allocation of roles and responsibilities, especially as younger family business players mature.
IN ORDER FOR THE NEXT GENERATION TO BE EMPOWERED YOU NEED THE SENIOR GENERATION TO REALLY BE THE FACILITATORS OF THAT PROCESS
“In order for the next generation
to be empowered you need the senior generation to really be the facilitators of that process,” says Richoufftz, whose Montreal-based foundation, along with consultants Deloitte, have spun off 15 new companies from 40 family businesses. “We advocate for entrepreneurship
to provide opportunities for the coming generation to support their endeavours in related areas that are not completely correlated to the mother company.” Joe Schmieder, principal consultant
at Chicago’s FBCG, acknowledges that Americans are working longer because they are living longer. They crave fulfilment and satisfaction, particularly in family firms, he says.
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CAMPDENFB.COM ISSUE 73 | 2018
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