On Day 0 of the REGENERATE Conference Kelly Sidoryk, a Holistic Management Professional Certified Educator, along with Marie von Ancken, HMI Program Manager, and Hilary Knight, an experienced Holistic Management Practitioner, co-facilitated a workshop on successful transfer planning for farming and ranching families. The topic is one that many, if not all, will be encountering at one time or another and despite differing context and circumstances, the principles are relevant to all. Kelly led the group, 38 attendees made up of farm/ranch owners, realtors, attorneys, farm/ranch family members, etc. through a number of engaging activities that help set the stage for a successful succession planning experience.
These activities included worksheets focused on clarifying values, creating a shared vision, effective communication techniques, and SWOT analysis.
The Holistic Planning and Goal Setting process was reviewed and Kelly shared the theory behind families in business and the three circle model was discussed with time spent on filling out the roles in one's own family. Communication and dealing with conflict is a key piece of the process and there were many useful tools and thoughts shared about communication styles, tips and generational assumptions. The steps for Succession Planning were presented along with the idea of having an outside facilitator to help navigate the process.
Hilary Knight shared her personal experience with Holistic Management and succession planning sharing the trials and successes her family experienced during their ranch transfer in South Africa. Her mother-in-law, Wendy Knight, was in the room and shared a bit about her perspective as well!
Here are the succession planning steps below. If you're interested in learning more, get in touch with Marie von Ancken (mariev@holisticmanagement.org)
10 Steps for Succeeding at Succession:Getting Organized & Getting Everyone Involved
Step 1 – Build an emotional bank account with your family
Step 2 – Decide on how you create your succession plan. Four ways for deciding as a group: Command|Consult|Consensus|Convenience
Step 3 – Appoint a succession planning leader – a quarterback – a person who has the willingness and commitment to lead the succession planning process
Step 4 – The succession planning leader must meet with each member or member couple of the family separately
Step 5 – Hold the succession planning family meeting at a time that is reasonable for everyone
Step 6 – Each person is given equal time to share their responses (practice active listening)
Step 7 – Allow time for dialogue, questions and comments and have someone take notes
Step 8 – Share the data with all professionals and consultants that are involved in the process
Step 9 –Parents use this data to draft a plan with the appropriate professionals
Step 10 – Continue meeting with the entire family and getting input as the succession plan develops
Event results:
What are the most useful things you learned at this event?That we need to just GET STARTED!Family Business vs Business Family . Third Party Support can be helpful!Passion for topic and its value from Hilary Knight's storyMeeting with the family more often to talk about succession planning early onIts very helpful to separate the emotional & business aspects.Great talking points to take back to my customers when discussing their succession planningUnderstanding generational dynamics and effective communication strategiesI was expecting this session to be about the financial side of transfer planning but am so happy to learn the communication and relationship piece has to take priority.Just coming into the room as a family or part of us was a really helpful stepRe-thinking the whole process of teasing out what tools might be helpful in this processSome worksheets to take home to the entire familyConnection with others & the stories shared. The technical information too.Principles and structure can reduce conflict. Communication is key.That there's way more to consider. Time is essential. Insights about my own values & goals