Family business consultancy
Get advice from someone who has walked the walk.
I meet family owners with understanding because I have been a part of the family-owned business, Brunata, for most of my life. This is something that they value. Book a meeting to learn if I can help you and your company.
Consultancy tailored to family businesses
Business consultant with personal experience from a family-run company
I help you professionalize relations between family owners and strengthen cooperation between the family and externally recruited top managers.
That is how I contribute to creating the best possible conditions for maximizing your investment returns.
As chair of the board of Brunata, I oversaw the sale of the company – basically a success story about a turnaround, expansion, and growth in the middle of a succession.
Was it challenging and conflictual to get to a point where we could strengthen the foundations of our company, reinvent our business, and implement a sale? Yes.
Can you draw on my experiences to get through the challenges you might face in an easier and better manner? That is what my customers say.
My time with Brunata and many years of board work, consultancy, and having dialogues with various family businesses constitute the experience that I employ when I advise you.
I am deeply committed to helping other companies get through the challenges that I have overcome with my family.
Contact me to schedule a phone meeting about a possible cooperation.
Contact me
- +45 6014 2635
- mail@evafischer.dk
You can book Eva Fischer as a speaker or consultant to your family- or partner-owned business. Eva Fischer can also be contacted about her work as a professional board member.
Eva Fischer has worked with:
THE BLOG
the latest blog posts
Have you remembered the emotions of your family business?
Hopefully, because they can both support and undermine the family of owners. This is not new knowledge. However, many family businesses could benefit from focusing more on how the owners
Get the next generation out of the family business!
You may disagree. But read what I mean and you'll probably end up agreeing with me. Because yes, you can very well involve
Is the family forum only for family business shareholders?
It's easy to imagine situations where not everyone in the owning family should have a say in the running of the family business. For example, discussions in the extended family often turn into arguments,
"After all, it's easier to get forgiveness than permission"
You've probably heard this statement before. But is there any truth or value in it when we're talking about the relationship between members of the ownership family who are in different
We can make the family business attractive for the next generation
But we need to listen to them and not force a future in the company on them. It's a fact of life. Few family businesses have the time to
As advisors, we need to recognize both our strengths and limitations. Otherwise, we fail our customers
It often takes many disciplines to run a successful business, so when a company needs advice, it's not surprising if the need includes input from several
Do you know the management consultant who is SO good that she doesn't need to listen to her clients?
I don't. He or she exists only in his or her self-awareness. Of course, the skilled management consultant comes with skills, strategies and tools that are proven to work - and a
Are you living your core values in your family business?
Hopefully, the answer is a resounding yes. Family businesses have a unique opportunity to execute long-term strategies that are 100 percent value-based. Strategies that can make your business
Should internal wars kill your family business?
It is a fact. Many family businesses have had serious internal disputes within the owning family - and yet the business has survived. The British monarchy is an extreme example.
Working with a family counsellor can create more distrust in the family business
Explanation follows. A family of owners has very little chance of finding the right family advisor if there is a high level of mistrust in the family dynamics. Even before the counselor arrives on the scene, there is
Remember to talk about values - and not just in times of crisis?
It's important to do this. Because maybe you're making financial progress in your business. Maybe everything seems to be running smoothly with your customers. But even if you've been
"Why is there so much drama in family businesses?"
The question reflects a puzzlement I sometimes encounter from people who advise family businesses without knowing much about their specific characteristics. Actually, I can understand their puzzlement. Because
"A counselor will not be able to understand OUR family"
When family businesses experience crisis and conflict, they are often reluctant to invite advisors in. The argument can be that an outsider would find it too difficult to understand the dynamics
Should you choose a family business advisor to advise your family business?
The answer may seem obvious. And then it's not so straightforward after all. What if you're struggling with cash flow? Couldn't it work just as well
Sorry, but if we don't share values, we shouldn't work together.
This should be a premise when family businesses hire external managers to run and develop the company. Because hiring outsiders may be necessary. But the owning family must ensure that
Is the family business attractive to the next generation?
We can make the family business attractive to the next generation. But we need to listen to them and not force a future in the business on them. That's the
What do women want when it comes to landing a top position in business?
Not the same as men, and not the same as what's on offer. At least not one-to-one. But I would still argue that women are neither opting out of boards nor
Should internal wars kill your family business?
It is a fact. Many family businesses have had serious internal disputes within the owning family - and yet the business has survived. The British monarchy is an extreme example.
"Unqualified and incompetent!"
That is how I worried others would think of me when I became head of the Norwegian division of my family's business. After all, I was just a trained sail-maker.
Have you tested your family for talent?
Have you tested your family for talent? You may know the scenario. You and your family own, develop, and run a business. But the division of responsibilities does not reflect transparent HR considerations.
FAMILY OR BUSINESS? Should I choose?
FAMILY OR BUSINESS? - Should I choose? Many families discuss their family business over Sunday lunch and in doing so become a 'business family'.
"Don't tell your husband!"
That is not the kind of wording you would find in any contract. However, when confidentiality is at play, it includes our spouses. So how about family businesses, where family members work closely together?
Women are also allowed to take advantage of an opportunity
The winds of change are blowing. A quota law on gender balance on boards may soon become a reality. In
Norway, gender quotas have been a reality since 2006.
Will you defend "moderately competent with a strong network"?
Quotas for women on boards are problematic. But not as problematic as the consequences of not introducing them. This is how I - without any enthusiasm - have come to view it.
Has your company helped Ukraine - and told people about it?
Has your company helped Ukraine - and told people about it? Lego and Bestseller have done something remarkable. They have donated hundreds of millions to relief organizations that help Ukrainians affected by war.
Transparent pay rates create more harmonious owner families
There is no doubt. If family owners are to maintain healthy relations, it is important that all family members feel that they are being treated fairly when it comes to money.
"I'm still running this business!"
Maybe they don't say it. But for the heads of family businesses, handing over leadership to the next generation can be difficult.
A broken family and a family business on the brink of financial ruin
That may sound dramatic. But after a generational change, with the new generation taking over the reins, that could be the result. Fortunately, the owning family can prevent this situation from happening.
Owner families should respect formal decision-making processes
Owner-families should respect formal decision-making processes Many family businesses have a board and day-to-day management made up of
a mix of family owners and people with no family ties to the business.
Have you tested your family for talent?
Have you tested your family for talent? You may know the scenario. You and your family own, develop, and run a business. But the division of responsibilities does not reflect transparent HR considerations.
Does your company have a family business forum?
Does your company have a family business forum? Even before I got involved in running my family's business, I wanted to know what was happening in the organization, both at strategic and operational level.
"Why does SHE always get the attention?"
"Why does she always get the attention?" The question is probably as old as humanity. When humans began to hunt and kill primordial cows, we worked in cohesive groups. But when the clan gathered around the camp fire at night, only one person could boast about throwing that last spear that made the kill.
Is your family business acting out its core values?
Is your family business acting out its core values? Hopefully, the answer is yes. Indeed, family businesses have a unique
opportunity to execute long-term strategies that are completely
value-based.
Are you underpaid?
Are you underpaid? If so, you are not alone. And if you are employed by your family's business, that could be the reason for the slump.
DOES THE FAMILY GET PAID TOO MUCH?
Does the family get paid too much? This is a relevant issue in many family businesses. Imagine that the CEO, who is NOT a member of the owner family, is paid a market level salary.
"Unqualified and incompetent!"
That is how I worried others would think of me when I became head of the Norwegian division of my family's business. After all, I was just a trained sail-maker.
BUSINESS AND FAMILY GATHERING must not be mixed
Everyone running a family business should agree on this - and preferably before the confusion becomes a problem, as I have experienced it can be.
Can family ties replace a contractual agreement?
No. Contracts are at least as important in family businesses as in other firms. A family member who is not contractually obliged to fulfil a well-defined role in the business may
FAMILY OR BUSINESS? Should I choose?
FAMILY OR BUSINESS? - Should I choose? Many families discuss their family business over Sunday lunch and in doing so become a 'business family'.
Suddenly I was lying on the sofa and could hardly move
This is what today's Berlingske (a large Danish newspaper) says about my condition after the sale of Brunata, the company that my family and I sold for almost 600 million DKK.