Ownership Insights: Competitive Advantage of Family and Employee Owned Firms

1.5 units

This course is designed to introduce students to the unique governance and financing issues faced by owners of closely held businesses and family controlled firms. The core issue addressed in this course is that of sustainability: what actions are required of the current owners to increase the likelihood that the business will last beyond them? What best practices can we learn from successful multi-generational family businesses, some of which have been in existence for 150 years and longer? There are three target audiences for this course: 1) Students who may be or are considering working for a closely held or family controlled business; 2) entrepreneurs who build successful businesses and want their business to remain privately owned; and 3) students seeking to work in the private equity, investment banking, legal or wealth management industries and who will be calling on this segment of the market. The course will be multi-disciplinary and more qualitative than quantitative. Each class will have a lecture and case component; there will be guest speakers at each session. Students will be required to complete a case study in advance of each class (not more than 2 pages). There will be no final exam. Class attendance and active participation is expected. 1.5 credits