Process Knowledge

The baby boomer generation is reaching retirement age. In the coming years, this means that many successful companies founded by people born between 1955 and 1965 will also be facing a leadership transition. Family-owned businesses are the backbone of the economy, the most important employers in the region, and a driving force for innovation and prosperity in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. Successful business transitions are therefore key to the economic future of small and medium-sized enterprises.

How can succession be successful? The book *Business Succession: The Process Knowledge* by Ingo Claus and Nils Koerber explores this question in all its facets. The two authors have been working for family-owned businesses for over 25 years; they are entrepreneurs themselves and trained mediators: They know that the success of a business succession depends on more than just technical details. Calculating the company’s value, as well as tax and legal considerations, are undoubtedly important. However, the examples of Playmobil, Haribo, and Bahlsen clearly illustrate just how crucial the “soft factors” of business succession are to success. If communication breaks down during an intra-family succession, the process will fail. Anyone who, in addition to working in the family business, has no plans for a fulfilling life in retirement will find it difficult to let go of day-to-day operations at the company.

Step by step, and illustrated with numerous examples from their daily practice as business succession consultants, the two authors explain how to prepare a company for the handover. Written in an engaging and accessible style, the book offers first-rate expertise and expert guidance on the complex topic of business succession across 23 chapters. It is the first guide to comprehensively analyze and explain the emotional aspects of handing over one’s own business.

The Practical Handbook offers concrete assistance on all key topics: worksheets and checklists make highly complex issues manageable and help readers take the first steps on the path from successful entrepreneur to contented retiree. A valuable guide not only for entrepreneurial families but also for bankers, tax advisors, and attorneys—in short: everyone who works with family businesses.

“Business Succession: The Process Knowledge” was published by the renowned academic publisher Vanderhoek & Ruprecht. The book is available in print, as an e-book, as an audiobook, and as a podcast. You can listen to a preview here.