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myth

Do most family businesses really fail by the third generation?

July 22, 2021

Many articles or speeches about family businesses include a reference to the “three-generation rule,” which says that most don’t survive beyond three generations. But that perception could not be further from the truth.

If you’re a fan of the HBO show Succession, or if you’re aware of the conflicts playing out publicly and perennially among some of the most visible family businesses in the world—think the Murdochs or Sumner Redstone’s family—you might assume that family businesses are more fragile than other forms of enterprise.

Is smooth succession in a family business really a myth?

March 1, 2004

Transitioning the family business from one generation to the next is fraught with hardship, headaches and high drama. So says the mainstream press but it’s just not so

Andrew Keyt is Executive Director of the Family Business Center at Loyola University Chicago and President of the US Chapter of the FBN.

Transitioning the family business from one generation to the next is fraught with hardship, headaches and high drama. So says the mainstream press but it's just not so