Picture a family-owned business. Today, your first thought might be Waystar RoyCo, the company at the center of HBO’s Succession. Its founder, Logan Roy, is a self-made but brutal and egotistical patriarch whose children fight for future control of the company. It’s riveting television, and while it’s true that some family companies have drama that ends in bitter family feuds, for the approximately 32.4 million family-owned businesses in America, the story is usually very different.
Instead of focusing on the family drama of a fictional company, you should reflect on the companies that are part of your everyday life, from your local diner staffed by three generations of one family to the global brands you recognize that are controlled by multi-generational families, such as Fidelity Investments, Mars, or Chick-fil-A. All of these family businesses are the heartbeat of our economy and contribute meaningfully to our lives.
