The Family Business Voice

Storytelling is essential to the intergenerational transfer of knowledge, values and culture. In the context of the family business, these narratives, according to Guillermo Salazar, usually revolve around the founder and adhere to a particular structure - a ‘monomyth’ - that we are all familiar with: think the story of the Buddha, or Jesus. Moreover, subsequent generations of family business lead...

On this episode of The Family Business Voice, Kaben Smallwood speaks with Ramia about the revolution in sustainable food production, how his Native American heritage influences his entrepreneurship and what the pandemic might mean for the future of aquaponics. Aquaponics is an ancient agrarian practice that has been in use for thousands of years, but applying aquaponic principles to modern agricul...

On this episode of The Family Business Voice, Viviana Jaramillo speaks to Ramia about Sol de Minca’s collaboration with neighbouring communities, operating a business with Sierra Nevada indigenous values in mind and what indigenous leaders there are saying about the pandemic. As soon as Sol de Minca’s owners knew they wanted to start a business on indigenous land, they contacted the local indigeno...

On this episode of The Family Business Voice, Samuel Bautista Lazo speaks with Ramia about indigenous production methods, the enduring quality they engender and the new channels he’s found to market his peoples’ product to the world. – In the remote mountain village of Xiguie’a (Teotitlán del Valle), Mexico, Benizaa (Zapotec) families combine a consummately modern approach to marketing with ancien...

On this episode of The Family Business Voice, Michael Connolly Munda-gutta Kulliwari spoke to Ramia about the important lessons we can learn from aboriginal art and culture. – The world is out of balance. The cycle of life was established long before humans, but we disrupted it and altered or destroyed elements that keep the planet healthy. – To achieve this balance once again, the next generation...

On this episode of The Family Business Voice, Anders Sorman-Nilsson, futurist, Founder of Thinque and part of a family business legacy , speaks with Ramia about how COVID-19 has changed our outlook on the world as well as our appetite for technology. The Australian-Swedish dual-citizen has shared the stage with heads of state, penned three books and featured as a keynote speaker around the world....

On this episode of The Family Business Voice, Edward Gallagher, CEO of Irish Premium Oysters, speaks with Ramia about Ireland’s aquaculture industry, the impact of climate change on shellfish and the strategic partnership that helped their business expand. – Edward’s father, Jimmy Gallagher, started Irish Premium Oysters in the mid-90s hoping that his son would one day take an interest in entrepre...

On this episode of The Family Business Voice, Ramia speaks to Jan Ryde, Hästen’s fifth-generation CEO, as well as his son and sixth-generation family business member, Lukas Ryde, about leveraging the power of technology in product development while balancing cutting-edge innovation with timeless tradition. – Regardless of the decade, there is continuity in the message passed from one generation to...

On this episode of The Family Business Voice, Feisal Alibhai speaks to Ramia about how COVID-19 has given health and wellbeing an immediacy that few regarded it with before the crisis. Informed by his work supporting others as the Founder and CEO of Qineticare, the world’s first Family Health Office, as well as his own experiences as a survivor, he offers actionable insight on how we can look afte...

On this episode of The Family Business Voice, Dennis Jaffe, author and family office consultant, speaks to Ramia about his latest book, Borrowed from your Grandchildren: The Evolution of Stewardship in 100-Year Families , and what we can learn from these longstanding companies in times of crisis. Borrowed from your Grandchildren is less of a how-to manual and more of a collection of shared wisdom...

On this episode of The Family Business Voice we continue our coverage on the COVID-19 crisis with perspectives from Africa’s family business community. Two of AFF’s founding members, Nike Anani and Tsitsi Mutendi, speak with Ramia from Lagos, Nigeria and Harare, Zimbabwe respectively. Nike Anani is a speaker, author and next-gen coach and mentor as well as a next-gen family member executive in her...

On this episode of The Family Business Voice, Alfredo De Massis and Farida F El Agamy speak with Ramia about the global pandemic and its unprecedented impact on family enterprises around the world. Alfredo De Massis, Professor of Entrepreneurship & Family Business, Free University of Bolzano in Italy, and Lancaster University Management School UK, is an organisation and management scientist wh...

On this episode of the Family Business Voice, Jan Gerber, Chairman of Paracelsus Recovery in Zurich, speaks with Ramia about the cycle of addiction and why some family business members self-medicate to deal with stress in the workplace. – A preventive approach, according to Gerber, is the most effective way for family business members to look after each other’s mental health, so awareness and comm...

On this episode of the Family Business Voice, Cecily McGuckin speaks with Ramia about Queensland Steel and Sheet’s rise to prominence and what it takes to transform a company’s culture. - According to Cecily, you must understand people on a personal level to know how to deal with them as an individual in a business. - When she joined, QSS' culture was at best behind the times, however, she was abl...

On this episode of The Family Business Voice, Michael Haenlein speaks to Ramia about the future of AI. Haenlein’s hypothetical future is informed by the past; to understand where AI is going, we must first understand where it came from: – AI is not new; it first appeared in WWII, and since then, we’ve slowly integrated it into our lives and businesses. – As such, doomsday scenarios that have AI “t...

Deep listening is much more than hearing – it is a skill as important as speaking and a vital part of communication. On this episode of The Family Business Voice, Oscar Trimboli speaks to Ramia about his five rules of deep listening. – Oscar’s first rule is preparatory. Clear your mind so you are available to listen. – His second rule involves removing distractions – cell phones, laptops and table...

Trusted Family is a web-based information management solution that helps family business members communicate with shareholders, directors, and advisors. It also helps them organise all their essential documents in one secure place. Founded in Belgium in 2007 by Edouard Thijssen and Edouard Janssen, Trusted Family’s client base now surpasses 10,000 users across 25 countries. They operate out of thr...

Those who think business is no laughing matter have probably not met Chris Tabish. The stand-up comedian uses his combined experience as a humourist and owner of a business consulting firm, Silicon Valley’s Venture West Consulting, to help others grow their businesses. Chris’s book, Comediology defines the principles of his practices as, “Applying successful comedic techniques traditionally used t...

Odd Couple , an Asian fusion diner born of Andy Yuen’s drive to do Canadian-Chinese in a contemporary style, exemplifies Saskatoon, Canada’s growing reputation as a culturally diverse food hub. Andy’s path to success wasn’t easy. Like many immigrants, he was a cartographer mapping an unknown land. He integrated into the community finding his bearings in life and business while trying to live up to...

George Isaac’s   book , Your Business, Your Family, Your Legacy: Building a Multigenerational Family Business That Lasts, demonstrates that family businesses foster strong communities by instilling positive family values. These values strengthen not only the bonds between family members but also those they share with their employees – a unique competitive advantage. Isaac   sat down with Ramia to...

Working in her family’s foundation from the age of 15, Ellie Frey Zagel felt eclipsed by the organisation and its leaderships’ personas. Eventually, her responsibilities grew to such an extent that she reached a breaking point and had to take time off. Before she could fulfil her work obligations, however, she had to figure out what she owed herself. Zagel’s experience coming to terms with isolati...

On this episode of The Family Business Voice, Gaurav Dhar spoke to Ramia about second-generation tech entrepreneurship, the evolution of financial technology in the Middle East and the future of Marshal. – Gaurav’s path to Marshal wasn’t straight forward. According to Gaurav, joining a new company, regardless of whether or not it is a family business, is like entering a new country – an unfamiliar...

On this episode of The Family Business Voice, Sheel Tyle talks to Ramia about the immigrant dream of his parents, how this dream translated to a career in venture capital investment and why we identify so strongly with immigrant entrepreneurs. – According to Sheel, success is the product of a supportive community. In a continuation of this trust and support, Sheel founded the venture capital compa...

On this episode of The Family Business Voice, Katerina Andreou speaks with Ramia about establishing boundaries to build in strength to the family business. – Boundaries become increasingly important the more time we spend together, which makes them much needed in the family business context. – Boundaries are foundational; managing them is an essential part of leadership. As leaders, the work cultu...

On this episode of The Family Business Voice, Shiromal and Hiran Cooray, Jetwing’s second-generation leadership team, spoke to Ramia about restructuring Jetwing and their hopes for the future. – The transition to the third generation of leadership in 2018 was an opportunity to restructure the company. – Hiran remains Chairman of the two public listed companies – Jetwing Symphony PLC and The Lighth...