Family Business Academy

Family business course

Family Business Foundations

What makes a family business, and why it behaves the way it does.

  • 4 units, at your own pace
  • Online: lessons, case films and assessments
  • Certificate anyone can check
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What you will learn

  • Tell a family business from other firms
  • Explain how family and business logic shape decisions
  • Place a firm among the four types of family firm
  • See where a family firm's advantage comes from

What the course covers

Short lessons, each with a few questions, and a checkpoint at the end of each unit.

  1. Unit 1

    What makes a business a family business

    • Lesson

      Owners, Managers and the Firm

      Tell private from public firms and place a firm on the ownership–management continuum

    • Lesson

      When the Family Joins

      Define a family business and see how much family, ownership and management can overlap

    • Lesson

      Five Dimensions of Family Involvement

      Identify the five ways a family can be involved in a firm

    • Checkpoint

      Checkpoint: What a Family Business Is

      Five quick questions on owners, managers, definitions and dimensions

    • Assessment

      Family Owner Styles

      What kind of family owner are you?

  2. Unit 2

    Two logics, four types

    • Lesson

      Whose Logic Drives the Decisions?

      Weigh restrictive and broad definitions, and see the behavioral view

    • Lesson

      Family Logic vs Business Logic

      Compare how each logic shapes relationships and key decisions

    • Lesson

      Four Types of Family Firm

      Classify a family firm by how strongly each logic is present

    • Checkpoint

      Checkpoint: Logics and Types

      Five quick questions on the two logics and the four types

  3. Unit 3

    The four types up close

    • Lesson

      Family-First Firms

      See how family-first firms handle people, governance, strategy, succession and performance

    • Lesson

      Business-First Firms

      See how business-first firms handle the same five areas

    • Lesson

      Family Business–First and Immature Firms

      Contrast the balanced type with firms that have no dominant logic

    • Checkpoint

      Checkpoint: The Four Types

      Five quick questions on the four types of family firm

  4. Unit 4

    Why family businesses behave differently

    • Lesson

      Family Goals Change the Reference Point

      See how family-oriented goals change how decisions are judged

    • Lesson

      Where the Family Advantage Comes From

      Identify the six family capitals and what turns them into an advantage

    • Case lesson

      Case Lesson: Birla, Chick-fil-A and Walmart

      Apply everything so far to three real family businesses across generations

    • Case film

      The Phone Call

      Family or business first? You decide.

Final test and certificate

Questions across the whole course. Pass it and you receive a certificate with your name and a number anybody can check, ready to add to LinkedIn.

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