Recently, one of our Certior Group co-collaborators Erik Gabrielson conducted a multi-generation family meeting in Minnesota. Another co-collaborator Ron Nakamoto, assisted Erik and participated as an observer. After reflecting upon the meeting, Ron shared the following thought-provoking observations about family leadership:
- It is essential that a multi-generational family come to a collective understanding that sustaining the family, the wellbeing of its members, and its wealth requires leadership and leadership development;
- It is advantageous to have a leadership development process; having an outside facilitator can greatly accelerate progress;
- Learning specific business skills is important and should be pursued but family members mentoring future family leaders is perhaps more important;
- There is a society-wide shift from autocratic to more collaborative family leadership taking place. This shift presents an opportunity to create a form of meritocracy that balances traditional hierarchical organizational leadership with more modern egalitarian ideas. That is, there can be a way to get input from many but still rely on the wisdom and judgement of those who are best-suited to lead to make informed decisions on important matters;
- Families must communicate, communicate, communicate if they are to prosper in the future;
- It’s important to adopt an entrepreneurial, learn-from-mistakes mindset to address the volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous world we live in.
These thoughts and ideas will undoubtedly inform the ongoing work that we’re doing here at The Certior Group. In addition, Erik plays an integral part in our ongoing Wealth and Wellbeing Community. I’m grateful for the progress we’re making in our efforts to help our colleagues, clients, and community optimize True Wealth.
