Family businesses share two things in common – they come from entrepreneurial roots and have a long-term orientation. However,an increasingly volatile business environment is putting them to the test. Today’s family firms have to deal with multiple challenges in a rapidly changing business landscape. Above all these challenges is the spectre of succession which always …
Are the younger generation really that difficult?
Last week I attended an interesting day seminar, where the subject of younger employees (Gen Z born from approximately from 1995 onwards) was brought up. Some believe that they are difficult to handle as they are not used to being given orders and they just have them executed without asking questions. However, I wonder if …
Continue reading Are the younger generation really that difficult?
Customer Priorities ARE Changing
Customers' priorities are changing...fast. This means that businesses need to identify new and different strategies that can help it navigate their customers’ shifting priorities. Global research is indicating various trends as to how customers are likely to be shifting their priorities, I will list some of them below:- More and more customers are interested on …
The First Step is Good Governance
All the changes, shaping up, adaptations, improvements that need to happen in a family business or SME, need to rely on good governance to stand a chance of actually happening and being done right. There are those who believe that in small businesses or in family business, governance can be formal or informal. The reasoning …
The only constant is CHANGE
In my daily discussions with various business owners I often discuss the difficulty of dealing with change. Some business owners and leaders find huge difficulty and resistance when implementing change in their companies. Other businesses have a deeper entrenched problem - resistance to change is coming from the top brass. I see many businesses, including …
Business Reality Check
As you know by now, I am a family business advisor. Dealing with Family businesses and SMEs has led me to understand both the strengths and weaknesses of such businesses. With all this experience in mind and with a deep understanding of the challenges and opportunities ahead, our team at EMCS together with AIS Environment …
The Need to Retain Older Employees
The world’s population is now 8 billion. In the coming decades, the world population is set to rise at a slower rate. More and more countries have started seeing population declines. In fact, more than 60% of the world’s population now lives in a country with a low fertility rate. These diverse trends — population …
Retaining your best employees
As you know for the good part of November 2022 till early December 2022, the family business committee within the Malta Chamber of Commerce together with the Family Business office ran a survey with various family businesses. One element that emerged clearly is that across the various types of businesses that make family businesses, there …
What to focus on in 2023
We had expected this year to pan out much differently than it actually did. I do not want to sound too pessimistic, but it is likely that the next year will not be much better, as 2023 will largely be effected by what happened in 2022 and before. High inflation, central bank tightening, Russia’s invasion …
New Year Resolution – Adopt a Leader’s Mindset
I constantly see business leaders fire fighting and way too busy to dedicate time to important matters - like learning and development, business strategic planning, budgeting, reviewing their business model or succession planning. Finding the time is so hard for many business leaders. With looming deadlines, daily tasks and urgent meetings all the rest can …
Continue reading New Year Resolution – Adopt a Leader’s Mindset
A Business Blog for SMEs & Family Businesses 