Intergenerational Social Media & Society

November 29, 2023 davidwerdigertransitionsLeave a comment

What have you noticed about the difference between the way you and other generations (up or down) use social media?

I stumbled across a wonderful article that deals with the intersection of two of my favourite topics: intergenerational issues and the impact of social media on society. It analyses the starkly different ways that Facebook is used by Baby Boomers, as opposed to Millenials. It comes from a web site called The Cheat Sheet, which is “dedicated to providing audiences the information they want in an approachable, entertaining way”. But looking at the content and the presentation, it looks much more like advertising-ridden viral click bait (which it probably is). While I might be old fashioned, to me the term “cheat sheet” brings to mind a memory aid concise enough to sneak into an exam. Because the actual content of the article is so good, I’m reproducing it here in a true “cheat sheet” form!

Baby Boomers	Millennials
Connect with old friends	Make new friends
Value family connections	Prefer to not have family connections
Tend to overshare	Share the highlights of their lives
Do not use Facebook as their sole news source	Use Facebook as their primary news source
More likely to fall for scams	Less likely to fall for scams
Use Facebook to rekindle old flames	Use Tinder and other sites to kindle new flames
Use Facebook to bookmark sites	Use the browser’s bookmark to keep track

So now that you have a real cheat sheet, let’s talk about what it means. There are some interesting themes here.

Friendship & Family: Boomers have accumulated plenty of friends already, and have had their share of relationships. So their approach is to reconnect rather than expand their network. Millennials are at a stage in life where they are expanding their personal networks and are less interested in family relationships. When I joined Facebook, there was a group (remember groups?) doing the rounds called “OMG my Mom’s on Facebook” as the young people expressed shock at the idea of their mothers invading their social media world. It seemed funny to me at the time, until a few years later when my mother (who was around 80) joined!

Media: For Boomers, social media augments traditional media – they get news from both. For Millennials, social media supercedes traditional media, so their newsfeed is their source of news. This is actually very significant, because it enhances the ‘echo chamber’ effect of social media (as users just see what their friends like and share) , and further erodes the value of online news sources, which are becoming less financially viable.

Technology: Millennials are far more tech savvy than Boomers, so understand the specific use of other platforms like Tinder, and other tools like browsers. They also know how to spot a scam a mile off.

Reprinted with permission

For more in-depth, thought-provoking discussion points and further commentary on family and business conflict resolution, access my Familosophy newsletter archives by signing into our newsletter https://DavidWerdiger.com.

#familyoffice #wealthmanagement #conflictresolution #strategicmanagement
#nextgensuccession #intergenerationalwealth #governance #leadershipdevelopment
#entrepreneurship

The post Intergenerational Social Media & Society appeared first on David Werdiger.

source https://davidwerdiger.com/articles/social-media-society-for-intergenerational-targets-2/

Family Business Leadership vs Management

November 27, 2023 davidwerdigertransitionsLeave a comment

A number of people succinctly describe the difference between leadership and management: architects vs builders, what things mean to people vs how things get done. In an entrepreneurial venture and often in a family business in the first generation, one person is often both leader and manager.

As the business evolves, sometimes it is helpful to separate those roles. In one of my tech businesses, I appointed a CEO and stepped back into a notionally non-executive director (but still 100% owner) role. The CEO was a very effective manager (better than I was), but I remained the leader. The dynamic between us worked well because I didn’t want to manage but still wanted to lead. The manager needed to be 100%, but as leader I was able to spend time on other interests.

Family business founders can’t be both leaders and managers forever, and not just because no-one lives forever. If they want other family members to step into roles within the business, they need to create the space for them. This can be scary as founders often find it hard to let go. One way to ease back is to shift from management – an executive role – to leadership – a board/governance role. This transition needs to be a step forward – embracing a new role to mitigate the effects of leaving an established role.

Consider This: Who are the leaders, managers and elders in your family enterprise? How did their roles evolve (or not evolve)? How might your role evolve?

Further reading: https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbesbusinesscouncil/2023/10/19/managing-a-difficult-family-business-transition/, https://www.businessobserverfl.com/news/2023/sep/28/next-up-ceo-family-business-requires-trust-transparency/, https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbesbusinesscouncil/2023/08/23/tips-for-working-with-family-and-continuing-your-family-business/, https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbesbusinesscouncil/2023/06/14/how-great-managers-and-monarchs-lead-their-kingdoms/, https://hbr.org/2022/09/why-your-family-business-needs-family-members-on-the-board, https://www.barrons.com/articles/how-to-honor-family-heritage-while-building-generational-wealth-51655410249, https://www.campdenfb.com/article/two-headed-leadership-realistic-option-family-companies, https://www.forbes.com/sites/eliamdur/2021/05/23/its-not-will-you-lead-its-how-will-you-lead/, http://www.campdenfb.com/article/collaboration-division-leadership-key-preserving-family-business, https://www.forbes.com/sites/advisor-intelligence/2019/12/22/10-common-mistakes-to-avoid-when-exiting-your-business/, https://www.forbes.com/sites/dereklidow/2019/07/01/when-is-it-time-for-a-company-founder-to-step-aside/#29f6096f73f5, http://www.columbusceo.com/business/20180910/succession-planning-baby-boomers-need-exit-strategy

#familyoffice #wealthmanagement #conflictresolution #strategicmanagement
#nextgensuccession #intergenerationalwealth #governance #leadershipdevelopment
#entrepreneurship

The post Family Business Leadership vs Management appeared first on David Werdiger.

source https://davidwerdiger.com/articles/family-business-leadership-vs-management/

Orphan Assets

November 27, 2023 davidwerdigertransitionsLeave a comment

When parents die, their children become orphans. Parents and children can have a deep and enduring relationship, and parents can be a key part of their children’s ‘origin story’. When parents go, they leave a void, and children need to process and grieve that loss, and then hopefully find a way to continue their own stories – both individually and as a family.

While assets are inanimate objects, owners can have something of a ‘relationship’ with them. When a founder creates an operating business, it is akin to birthing a child. The business needs attention as it grows, and can become a part of the owner/founder’s identity. The conviction and story behind certain investments can be of non-financial value to the investor. Other assets may carry sentimental value and connect strongly to family memories: art, jewellery, an heirloom, or even a tea set.

If parents choose to transfer their assets to their children (either during their lifetimes or afterwards), this ‘relationship’ with assets can change. The child of the founder may not feel the same way about the business her father started, or may reject ownership of certain assets (e.g. fossil fuels) because of their values and beliefs. If a child associates the successful family business with an absent workaholic parent, they will not want to ultimately own it! Deciding who gets the tea set may be far more difficult than splitting the portfolio of listed equities. Assets can become orphans.

These considerations are important when thinking about intergenerational wealth transition. If parents want their children to share their passion for certain assets, the time to start is early – by telling the stories of those assets and ensuring the feelings around them are positive.

Consider This: How do you feel about your family’s financial assets? How does this contrast with how other generations in the family? What stories do you tell about them? What associations do they carry for your children?

Further reading: https://www.entrepreneur.com/leadership/running-a-family-business-means-you-need-to-prepare-your/459117, https://mibiz.com/sections/small-business/most-family-owned-businesses-continue-to-lack-formal-succession-plans, https://www.professionaladviser.com/news/4019143/start-engaging-generation-clients-rewatch-integenerational-wealth-webinar, https://www.nnbusinessview.com/news/inheriting-a-business-heres-how-to-ensure-a-successful-transition/, https://www.forbes.com/sites/rochellemclarke/2019/01/10/a-new-year-another-chance-to-secure-the-future-of-your-family-business/#1bf09fce4648

#familyoffice #wealthmanagement #conflictresolution #strategicmanagement
#nextgensuccession #intergenerationalwealth #governance #leadershipdevelopment
#entrepreneurship

The post Orphan Assets appeared first on David Werdiger.

source https://davidwerdiger.com/articles/orphan-assets/

Family Business Leadership vs Management

November 23, 2023 davidwerdigertransitionsLeave a comment

Consider This: Who are the leaders, managers and elders in your family enterprise? How did their roles evolve (or not evolve)? How might your role evolve?

#familyoffice #wealthmanagement #conflictresolution #strategicmanagement
#nextgensuccession #intergenerationalwealth #governance #leadershipdevelopment
#entrepreneurship

The post Family Business Leadership vs Management appeared first on David Werdiger.

source https://davidwerdiger.com/2023/11/family-business-leadership-vs-management/

Orphan Assets

November 22, 2023 davidwerdigertransitionsLeave a comment

#familyoffice #wealthmanagement #conflictresolution #strategicmanagement
#nextgensuccession #intergenerationalwealth #governance #leadershipdevelopment
#entrepreneurship

The post Orphan Assets appeared first on David Werdiger.

source https://davidwerdiger.com/2023/11/orphan-assets/

Raising Unentitled Kids

November 17, 2023 davidwerdigertransitionsLeave a comment

Consider This: How do you explain your family wealth to young children? At what do you start this process? How do you say ‘no’ to them and place limits on their spending when they reply “but we can afford it”?

Affluenza and entitle-itis are some of the newest ‘diseases’ that afflict the wealthy, and of course there is always the ubiquitous ‘privilege’ that almost everyone is now obliged to check.

In her book Uneasy Street: The Anxieties of Affluence, Rachel Sherman, associate professor of sociology, has interviewed 50 affluent parents in and around NYC to understand the challenges they face raising children with wealth.

They are somewhat torn between stigma of wealth and the competitive environment in which they live. Attitudes to wealth have changed, and while parents want to give their children the opportunities that come with wealth, they still want to keep them ‘normal’ and able to mix comfortably in (and be accepted by) broad social circles.

As much as ‘tough love’ is needed to limit spoiling, it’s also essential to teach children to be comfortable with wealth, and to appreciate what it brings to their lives. Take it, but don’t take it for granted.

Original article: https://aeon.co/ideas/how-new-yorks-wealthy-parents-try-to-raise-unentitled-kids, http://press.princeton.edu/titles/11096.html (the book)

[Reposted with permission]

#familyoffice #wealthmanagement #conflictresolution #strategicmanagement
#nextgensuccession #intergenerationalwealth #governance #leadershipdevelopment
#entrepreneurship

The post Raising Unentitled Kids appeared first on David Werdiger.

source https://davidwerdiger.com/2023/11/raising-unentitled-kids/

Are Generational Wars Political or Social?

November 15, 2023 davidwerdigertransitionsLeave a comment

I think the notion of generational wars is a perpetual myth (or perhaps a perpetual truth). Every generation has certain influences which drive their attitudes (political & social) and thus the policies enacted by their leaders. It’s very easy to point cross-generational fingers of blame, but very hard to sit in the other-generational seat and play judge.

Have the Baby Boomers ruined the US economy (and the world) for the Millenials? That’s what Bruce Gibney asserts in his book A Generation of Sociopaths: How the Baby Boomers Betrayed America. Gibney lays blame on the Boomers that have controlled Congress for decades for the huge increase in the debt-to-GDP ratio, the under-investment in infrastructure, and inaction on climate change. He claims that it all stems from their lack of investment in the future.

UK academic Dr Beverley Searle agrees somewhat, stating that the blame sits with politicians’ funding decisions which makes the welfare state unsustainable, but deflects the notion of blaming Boomers for the benefits they enjoyed.

Further, I think Gibney is using the Boomers and Millennials labels as proxies for conservatives and progressives. The policy approaches of Boomers that he condemns are conservative policies, and he is a progressive. He might be better off calling a spade a spade rather than masking a political argument as an intergenerational one.

The Pew Research Center’s March report “The Generation Gap in American Politics” makes for interesting reading. While it shows younger people being more progressive, it doesn’t explore whether there are generational drivers and what they might be.

Consider This: In your family, are the older generations more politically conservative than the younger ones? To what extent are their differences driven by generational influences rather than politics?

Original articles: https://www.vox.com/2017/12/20/16772670/baby-boomers-millennials-congress-debt, Gibney’s book https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/bruce-cannon-gibney/a-generation-of-sociopaths/9780316395809/, https://www.scotsman.com/news/attacks-on-greedy-baby-boomers-are-unjustified-says-academic-1-4686858, Pew Report http://www.people-press.org/2018/03/01/the-generation-gap-in-american-politics/

[re-posted with permission]

#familyoffice #wealthmanagement #conflictresolution #strategicmanagement
#nextgensuccession #intergenerationalwealth #governance #leadershipdevelopment
#entrepreneurship

The post Are Generational Wars Political or Social? appeared first on David Werdiger.

source https://davidwerdiger.com/2023/11/political-social-2/

An Inheritance Boom is Coming

November 10, 2023 davidwerdigertransitionsLeave a comment

Increasing life expectancies have meant that for the first time in history, four generations are alive at the same time. This has important implications for the timing of the transition of family wealth.

There is an ‘inheritance boom’ coming when the Millennial generation inherit the wealth of the Baby Boomer generation, but this is expected to peak in 2035 when the average Millennial has already passed the age of 60!

Some wealth originators shudder at the idea of passing over the reins while they are still alive, having seen other children squander their family’s wealth. While there is always a risk that the next generation will blow it, the previous generation can reasonably argue that they don’t want to be around if/when that happens.

But is it reasonable to make the next generation wait that long? Granted, they will likely have many years to enjoy the wealth (and the control of the wealth), but holding back can create resentment and can be considered condescending and patronising.

Consider This: At what age do you think your children should inherit significant family assets? To what extent is that driven by your own experience? Whatever the age, what are you doing to prepare them for that eventuality?

Original article: https://www.moneywise.co.uk/news/2018-01-02/millennials-set-inheritance-boom-when-they-turn-61, https://www.tharawat-magazine.com/facts/third-generation-failure-family-business/

#familyoffice #wealthmanagement #conflictresolution #strategicmanagement
#nextgensuccession #intergenerationalwealth #governance #leadershipdevelopment
#entrepreneurship

The post An Inheritance Boom is Coming appeared first on David Werdiger.

source https://davidwerdiger.com/2023/11/inheritance-boom-2/

Succession and the non-family CEO

November 8, 2023 davidwerdigertransitionsLeave a comment

As a family enterprise matures, and often in the context of succession planning (or ageing incumbents), the decision to appoint a non-family CEO comes to the fore. Having made the decision to consider one, families ask the usual question: what do we want in a (non-family) CEO?

Perhaps they should turn it around and ask themselves: what non-family member would want to be our CEO and why? Putting themselves in the shoes of a prospective CEO makes it easier to reduce the risk in the hire and avoid setting the candidate up for failure.

For the prospective CEO, well-defined authority and autonomy is essential, as is the comfort that the role is not interim while the family works out the ‘real’ next CEO. The boundaries of the role are also essential. A family cannot expect an external CEO to also be burdened with family issues. That could be a huge distraction from their main role.

That means (a) the family governance must be in order, and (b) the family may also need the assistance of externals who have a focus on the non-business aspects of family.

Consider This: Is your family considering a non-family CEO? Do you have a clear delegation of authority as part of the position description? Have you considered how long the CEO might stay on the job and why?

Further reading:

https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbesbusinesscouncil/2022/02/16/family-businesses-10-tips-for-hiring-your-first-nonfamily-ceo/?sh=7355d7737c38, http://www.campdenfb.com/article/rising-above-how-succeed-non-family-chief-executive, https://www.forbes.com/sites/dennisjaffe/2019/01/09/leading-a-family-business-when-its-not-your-family-opportunity-or-potential-disaster/#2aab184a1b37, https://insight.kellogg.northwestern.edu/article/family-business-decision-making

Actionable Generational Wealth Succession

#familyoffice #wealthmanagement #conflictresolution #strategicmanagement
#nextgensuccession #intergenerationalwealth #governance #leadershipdevelopment
#entrepreneurship

The post Succession and the non-family CEO appeared first on David Werdiger.

source https://davidwerdiger.com/2023/11/non-family-ceo-2/

ESG Investing for the Rising Generation

November 2, 2023 davidwerdigertransitionsLeave a comment

Successful entrepreneurs are often control freaks. But they can’t control whether their children can take over the business or the assets and keep them growing.

Entrepreneurs may be visionaries, but sometimes it takes an external advisor to identify choices that they might otherwise overlook. Transferring full control of an operating asset to children isn’t the only option. Neither is continuing the way things have always been done just for the sake of it.

The drive towards impact and environmental, social and governance, ESG, investment is running in parallel with the generational wealth transition. The stereotype that it is just young people who are interested in ESG investing is quickly becoming out of date. Often, parents say that they support this investment choice but when they were setting up the business in the beginning, their focus was on profitability. A common interest in ESG investing can help parents and advisors connect with the rising generation.

That said, a change in investment approach driven by the rising generation can be a source of conflict, and needs to be handled judiciously.

For effective wealth transition, it’s important for families to learn how they can create value together through increased understanding of each other and a shared vision of their family’s future.

Consider This: What has your family done to raise the next generation of entrepreneurs? Are you able to deal with “Dad: I have a great idea – can I have a million dollars to invest in it?” Has your family experienced intergenerational conflict over investment decisions?

Original articles: https://entrepreneurship.babson.edu/power-of-entrepreneurial-family/, https://www.marketwatch.com/story/how-to-know-if-your-children-are-ready-to-take-over-your-business-2020-10-20, https://www.ft.com/content/dea5e5d1-8650-4819-aecc-699b612419aa, https://www.ftadviser.com/investments/2020/12/10/who-is-making-the-esg-investment-choices/, https://www.ftadviser.com/investments/2020/11/25/how-esg-can-help-succession-planning/

[Reposted with permission]

#familyoffice #wealthmanagement #conflictresolution #strategicmanagement
#nextgensuccession #intergenerationalwealth #governance #leadershipdevelopment
#entrepreneurship

The post ESG Investing for the Rising Generation appeared first on David Werdiger.

source https://davidwerdiger.com/2023/11/esg-nextgen-2-2/