19/4/2021
Questions for family business successors.
General information
1. Your name: Andreas Papadopoulos 2. Your age: 25
3. Company name: No fixed name, new SPV for each project. Usually RIM + something (e.g.: RIM Engineering)
4. Industry: Real Estate Development
5. Location: Currently Helenska 24, Prague, but under Investors Name, ASTON GROUP 6. Year of foundation: Different company, project every 5 years or so
7. Age of the owner: 55
8. Number of employees: 4 + a lot of outsourcing.
Questions
1. Is your company going through succession within the next 10 years?
Hopefully not fully but investment capital will be passed on so I can run my own projects related to the family business.
2. Does your family business have a family council in place?
No family council
• Are family council meetings conducted in a formal or informal manner?
We don’t have one. Just informal discussions related to how things are currently going.
Meetings are conducted during dinner where we talk about everything.
If there is a formal discussion within the company then there are outsiders (not related to family) present but we do not conduct such meetings with only family members present.
3. Has there been a selection of a clear successor in your business?
Not clear, me and my sister will both receive a piece as it stands right now. But I have more interest in the industry we operate in and therefore will probably receive majority ownership upon the retirement of my parents.
How much responsibility does the successor currently hold over daily operations? (Please describe your functions and assign a percentage)
Not much. I do what I am told to do. Sometimes there are discussions related to decisions but I do not have much input currently
• Are business strategy decisions made by the incumbent, successor or both?
Made by Parents and the Investors, not the successor’s money so he/she have no say apart from occasional advice.
• If such decisions are made by the incumbent and successor are business perspectives aligned or differ?
The Incumbents have a quarter century of experience. What they say goes. Hard to argue with experience.
• Will you make drastic changes to the business strategy after the transfer of ownership has been completed? If so would you describe the strategy you plan on implementing to be more aggressive or conservative than the current one?
Whatever works at that time. Depends upon the objective we are trying to achieve.
Sometimes its conservatives and other times more aggressive. I would call it dynamic approach.
4. In your own words please describe what you believe contributes to the competitive advantage that family businesses hold over non- family business
Being able to develop talent which has a higher probability of staying loyal to you over time. Family relations are stronger than non-family relations. In family there are no secrets and parents will pass on secrets they would not pass on to unrelated people. Trust takes lifetimes to build.
5. Are there criteria for hiring family members in your business? (education, experience) Both education and experience are required. For example I would not receive a better job than somebody ells with the same qualifications. I was taught that from a young age and believe it is very important thing to learn and keep for my own future.
6. Are stakeholders aware of your succession plan?
Only the ones who will likely experience the actual succession. Others do not need to know until it has an impact on them.
7. Is succession planning part of your businesses overall strategy or are they unrelated?
No, they are unrelated. Our strategy does not take into account succession since it is still too unpredictable.
8. Do you intend on keeping the business family owned/operated?
Yes. Across many generations to come. Owned and operated. No intention on leaving.
9. How many years have you been active in your family business and how have your responsibilities evolved?
Ever since they gave me my first job when I was around 16. My responsibilities have evolved from basic tasks into participating in interesting projects which we are currently working on. Knowledge and expertise take time to build and therefore I needed some time to be ready for more responsibility.
10. Are your main competitors family businesses or non-family businesses? Please briefly describe your competitive position in your industry.
Non-family businesses with more capital and scale than us. We differentiate on providing clients with heightened attention to detail and forming relations that last longer than just a project.
