Blog 

• Family Business in the News: The Bad, the Ugly and (Once in a While) the Good
  

  Posting by Amy Pengidore and Ed Kopf

  Closely-held, family businesses are in the news less often than their public counterparts – even though they comprise a major segment of the economy, so I try to keep an eye out for the occasional account that comes along and provides a window into these very private entities. There may be some lessons we can draw from these stories.

• Thanksgiving: Gratitude and Your Partnership
  

  Posting by Stewart Christ, MBA, Principal at BMC Associates

  Thanksgiving is a wonderful season when we reserve time with our families to celebrate the many gifts that we have received. Contemplating and expressing gratitude, individually and as a group, has many powerful benefits including increased energy levels, empathy, and optimism. Research has further determined that expressing gratitude can improve our physical health and emotional health and the health of our personal partnerships.

• Safeguarding the Family When the Business is Sold
  

  Posting by Ed Kopf, Ph.D.

  Erwin G. Krasnow, an Associate at BMC Associates, and I were recently asked to contribute an article to Radio and Television Business Report on the topic of selling a family business. Family businesses have historically been the primary owners of radio and television stations. With the consolidation of their industry, many family-owned stations are being sold to larger, often publicly owned, organizations.

• Built to Sell: Co-Founders and Co-Sellers
  

  Posting by Stewart Christ, MBA, Principal at BMC Associates

  John Warrillow creates a practical resource for business owners who might be looking to create value and exit their business in Built to Sell: Creating a Business That Can Thrive Without You. The book is based on a parable that provides an enlightening prescription for creating enterprise value and a process for preparing the company for sale.

• Have a Lean Start-up, but Start Out Right
  

  Posting by Stewart Christ, MBA, Principal at BMC Associates

  I recently enjoyed reading The Lean Start-up by Eric Ries. Ries does a masterful job of describing an efficient method for starting an entrepreneurial technology company. He promotes the creation of a learning organization and managing the creation process by taking discrete steps that produce a meaningful and measurable outcome.