Family businesses are recognised for taking a long-term view and planning for generations to come. Inherent with the family business model are the underlying values, borne out of the family owners and these values can be an integral part of sustainability and success too.
Despite the challenges posed by 2020 and the need for short-term planning to respond to the pandemic, it has been clear that values that have been truly ingrained into the fabric of the business have helped them not only survive but also thrive in many instances.
The 2020 FBU Family Business Survey looked into the role of values within the family business sector and found that 94% of respondents believe their values play an important role in defining the family business strategy and 86% believe that their values help in the day-to-day running of the business. Add to the mix that 66% think these values help increase revenue, profitability and growth it is easy to see why it is more important than ever that values continue to have a prominent focus within family owned firms.
It has been recognised over the years that one of the characteristics of a strong culture is having a clearly defined set of values and family firms with a strong culture tend to be built around a strong set of core values introduced by the founding generation and reinforced and developed by subsequent generations. It is often the case that defined and shared values combined with a shared purpose and aligned goals promotes unity and cohesion and can lead to entrepreneurship and innovation.
The Values At The Core Of UK Family Firms
- Integrity
- Trust
- Quality
- Passion
- Respect
- Fairness
- Long-term perspective
- Excellence
- Entrepreneurial spirit
- Social responsibility
Check out the full findings of the 2020 Family Business Survey here
