Executive MBA Seminar “Single Family Offices, Entrepreneurship & Governance”

Frankfurt School of Finance & Management, Hamburg Campus

How to perform in depth analyses of value creation strategies in family offices, especially in the current environment? How is family equity created and sustained as vital value creation mechanism for entrepreneurial families over generations? What role play family strategy, governance, and the family as shareholder?

Last weekend we had the pleasure to join exceptional MBA candidates from all over the world for a challenging MBA elective on ‘Value Creation in Family Offices’ at the Frankfurt School of Finance and Management on the campus in beautiful, springtime Hamburg. In addition to cutting edge theoretical foundations and current research, we discussed a variety of past and current empirical success & failure stories of entrepreneurial families, both in the original family business or in the subsequent family office. Moreover, we had the precious chance to share thrilling individual experiences within the family business or family office on value creation within the group in a protected, discreet setting.

Guys – thanks for sharing your valuable insights!

Based on our exclusive set of case studies of UHNWI, entrepreneurial families, and their ultra-affluent family offices, the participants gained a deep understanding of the heterogeneity of principal families and their idiosyncratic resource-base and implications on individual family office structures. By analyzing the respective initial situation and applying our structured, hands-on analysis approach, the participants learned about a variety of well-known but also hidden value generation strategies. The participants applied their knowledge on strategy, governance, and value creation by performing a challenging case study competition in which they developed and presented an ad-hoc strategy consulting approach for the respective owning family in their cases, especially addressing the essential cause–effect relationships, the development of scenarios, and the assessment and implementation of adequate measures.

We are impressed by the strength of analysis and by the multitude of creative and solution-oriented advisory approaches that have emerged and been presented here.

Chapeau to the participants!

The intensive weekend was rounded off with a culinary event at the Laboratorio di AUST, of my co-lecturer and entrepreneurial friend Robert Knoop-Troullier. Thanks, Robert for your great cooperation and your generosity!

Many thanks to our MBA participants and the prudent team of Frankfurt School who made this unique experience possible again. We wish you all the best for finishing your MBAs and much success in subsequent adventures to come!