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Global Immersion: Consulting & Advising Family Enterprises (CAFE in Italy) 2025 Student Reflections
Seven days, five Italian cities, six company visits, and more than a dozen engaging sessions—the “CAFE in Italy” Global Immersion course took 16 graduate students on a deep dive into the heart of Italian family enterprises. Led by Professor Gaia Marchisio, participants met with owners, next‐generation leaders, and seasoned advisors.
Advising Enterprising Families: The Role, the Gap, and the Opportunity
Advising enterprising families calls for more than just business savvy; it requires understanding trust, legacy, and emotion. While advisors are often skilled in governance and strategy, many overlook the “human architecture” that truly drives family enterprise success. Below, we explore how to bridge this critical gap.
How Family Enterprises Can Benefit from The Employee Advantage by Stephan Meier
At the 2025 Family Enterprise Conference, Nepotism & Nurturing: Challenging the Narrative, Stephan Meier—author of The Employee Advantage—moderated our panel of family CEOs with one central theme: employees are a strategic resource, not just a cost.
Family First: An Integrative Conceptual Review of Nepotism in Organizations
In anticipation of our February 21 conference, Nepotism & Nurturing: Challenging the Narrative, this month’s newsletter dives into the complexities of nepotism in family enterprises.
Legacy: A Reflection on the Year and a Vision for the Future
As we close another year, the concept of legacy invites us to pause and reflect on the enduring impact of our actions and choices. Legacy, as explored in family enterprises, goes beyond financial inheritance. It encompasses values, decisions, and the footprints we leave for those who follow. This month, we consider legacy not just as a gift we bestow but as a lens through which we view our past, present, and future.
Explore Further
Global Immersion: Consulting & Advising Family Enterprises (CAFE in Italy) 2025 Student Reflections
Seven days, five Italian cities, six company visits, and more than a dozen engaging sessions—the “CAFE in Italy” Global Immersion course took 16 graduate students on a deep dive into the heart of Italian family enterprises. Led by Professor Gaia Marchisio, participants met with owners, next‐generation leaders, and seasoned advisors.
2024 Owners' Day: A New Era for the Global Family Enterprise Program
On October 1st, the Global Family Enterprise Program held its inaugural Owners' Day, a milestone event that brought together family enterprise leaders, students, alumni, and experts to explore the evolving role of ownership in today’s world. The event showcased the potential for family enterprises to not only drive economic success but to lead with values and create sustainable, positive change across industries, communities, and generations.
Think Bigger
Our spotlight is on the latest groundbreaking work by Sheena Iyengar, the esteemed inaugural S.T. Lee Professor of Business in the Management Division at Columbia Business School, and a renowned authority on choice and decision-making.
Created with Purpose: Dilmah Tea & Resplendent Ceylon with Dilhan and Malik Fernando
On this episode of the BRITE Ideas Podcast from the Center on Global Brand Leadership at Columbia Business School, Professor J.P. Kuehlwein and Director Matthew Quint speak with Dilhan Fernando (CEO, Dilmah Tea) and Malik Fernando (Managing Director, Resplendent Ceylon) about the creation and growth of the first owned and operated tea company in Sri Lanka, Dilmah Tea.
2022 Conference Recap: Keynote Fireside Chat with Jon Sebastiani ’12
Jon Sebastiani ’12 took the audience through his journey joining his family’s businesses and expounded on some of the successes and challenges he faced. He shared practical relational advice for those thinking of joining their family’s business and what to look out for, as well as some career advice from his experience launching his own private equity fund after his family sold their business and he graduated from CBS.
2022 Conference Recap: Family Enterprise in an Interconnected World
Panelists discussed new challenges, from “cancel culture” to personal privacy, which businesses, and their people, must navigate in an inescapably interconnected world.
2022 Conference Recap: Family Office
The panelists on this session gave us an inside look at the missions and family dynamics in family offices. They spoke about some of the difficulties of keeping younger family members engaged as family businesses grow, and also highlighted some things to consider when deciding who should run a family’s office and how they should do it.
Making It Work: Setting up a Family Office and Working With the Next Generation
Husband and wife Bram Bluestein ’71 and Ilene Gordon joined the Global Family Enterprise Program in 2019 for “Making It Work: Two Careers, One Family, and a Lasting Legacy.” In this clip, they discuss setting up their family office and involving the next generation in the business.
Making It Work: Managing a Dual Career Household
Husband and wife Bram Bluestein ’71 and Ilene Gordon joined the Global Family Enterprise Program in 2019 for “Making It Work: Two Careers, One Family, and a Lasting Legacy.” Their candid insights on balancing their two high-powered careers while raising a family resonate today.