In what is believed to be the first study of its kind to be conducted in the region, the Business Families Institute at SMU (BFI@SMU), in collaboration with Deloitte, surveyed a total of 83 family businesses in Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, and the Philippines on their current sentiments on succession issues and strategies. The study entitled ‘Asian Business Families Succession – Going the Distance with the Next Generation’ showed that 90 per cent of the business families indicated that Business Family Management Succession is important to them and they believed that their Next Generation will be able to succeed and manage the family business. The findings also indicated that a full cycle of a management succession process would take an average of 25 years. Commenting on the findings, Associate Professor Annie Koh, the Academic Drector of BFI@SMU, said that “Compared to business families in the States and in Europe, family businesses in Asia are still in their infancy stages. Gaining insights on their priorities and thoughts on succession will enable us to better assist them in enhancing the quality and lifespan of their businesses.”
