Family Business Network Meeting

The 8th study session of the "Family Business Network," one of the networks for graduates of the NUCB Business School, was held on August 20-21, in a two-day and one-night camp format.

The venue was the campus of International High School (Nisshin City, Aichi Prefecture), a boarding school that opened on September 1, 2022, within the same school corporation as NUCB Business School.

In this study session, Mr. Sekido, a Nagoya Campus MBA alumnus who is a member of the group, provided as a teaching material a case in which the main character, a 24-year-old university graduate working for a listed company, returns to the family business of a long-established car sales company that is expected to go into decline in the future and goes through a process of trial and error; on Day 1, he presented "The Second Foundation of a Long-established Family Business." On the second day, all participants discussed the following questions under the theme of generational change in a long-established family business.

• As a long-established business, how can we build a relationship of trust with customers, employees, and family members who are involved in the business (and who own shares)?
• What can I do to cooperate with my brother, who took over the family business before me, and help the family business (including new businesses) thrive?

Since many of the participants in this network are involved in business succession, opinions were exchanged based on their own experiences. In addition, undergraduate students from Prof. Kato's NUCB Business School seminar group, who were also at the International High School campus for the camp, joined the discussion, bringing together a diverse range of perspectives from both undergraduate students and working professionals. The discussion also focused on the Art (sensitivity and intuition) aspect required of managers, and the study session served to deepen understanding of the role of next-generation managers who will be responsible for the survival of family businesses.

About the Family Business Network

Not only family businesses, but also alumni, current students, and faculty of NUCB Business School who are interested in various matters related to business succession, will hold a proactive study session, with everyone viewing it as their own management issue.