This year’s conference invites you to explore this provocative question through a new lens, breaking down stereotypes and revealing the nuances behind family hiring practices.
Friday, February 21, 2025
All day starting at 8:00 AM
David Geffen Hall
645 West 130th Street, New York, NY 10027
Organized by
Global Family Enterprise Program
The Columbia Business School Global Family Enterprise Program is where we empower family enterprise community leaders with the strategic mindsets, skills, and connections needed to drive sustainable progress.
Produced in partnership
We are proud to acknowledge our valued partners whose collaboration strengthens the mission of the Global Family Enterprise Program and the Family Enterprise Conference.
About the Conference
Nepotism is often seen as a double-edged sword in family enterprises. Consider these scenarios:
- A family member is hired for their exceptional commitment and skills, driving innovation and growth.
- Tacit knowledge, values, and traditions are effectively passed down to strengthen the business across generations.
- A family member gains privileges solely due to their status, sparking resentment and eroding trust among employees.
- Poor performance by a family member goes unchecked, harming the business to avoid disrupting family harmony.
How can family enterprises navigate these challenges and opportunities? What role do cultural norms, shared responsibilities, and long-term goals play in turning nepotism into an advantage rather than a risk?
Join us at the Nepotism & Nurturing: Challenging the Narrative Conference to explore these critical questions. This year’s theme focuses on rethinking nepotism in family enterprises, offering an engaging and interactive experience that includes:
- Tailored sessions for family businesses and family offices, addressing unique challenges and opportunities.
- Inspiring stories from global family enterprises that challenge assumptions and reveal innovative approaches.
- Actionable strategies to reshape leadership and foster sustainable success in family enterprises.
Don’t miss this opportunity to gain fresh insights and practical tools to navigate leadership and legacy in your family enterprise.
Register now and be part of the conversation shaping the future of family businesses!
Agenda
- Registration Opens
- Welcome and Opening Remarks: Nepotism vs. Nurturing—Where's the Line?
- Keynote Conversation: The Family Tightrope—Balancing Family and Merit
- Plenary Workshop: The Nepotism Paradox—Tough Conversations Worth Having
- Break
- Panel Discussion: Cultural Narratives of Nepotism—A Global Lens
- Networking Lunch
- Breakout Sessions
- Family Business Track: Beyond Nepotism—Cultivating Merit and Purpose in the Next Generation
- Family Office Track: Beyond Bloodlines—Integrating Family and Non-Family Talent in the Family Office
- Break
- Panel Discussion: The CEO Dilemma—Bloodlines, Merit, and Organizational Impact
- Closing Reflection and Discussion: What We’ve Learned
- Networking Toast
The day begins with a dynamic keynote and an engaging workshop designed to spark active participation and meaningful dialogue. These opening sessions set the stage by tackling the often-avoided conversations around merit and leadership in family enterprises, fostering curiosity and equipping participants with concrete approaches to navigate these challenges.
Throughout the day, a combination of thought-provoking panel discussions and hands-on workshops dives into the complexities of leadership, legacy, and talent within family enterprises. Panels will feature firsthand insights from leaders grappling with these issues, while workshops encourage collaboration, personal reflection, and the development of actionable strategies tailored to participants' experiences.
Customized breakout tracks provide participants with the opportunity to delve deeper into strategies uniquely suited to the challenges faced by family businesses and family offices, ensuring relevance and practical application.
Between sessions, enjoy opportunities to connect with peers, industry leaders, and experts over breaks, lunch, and a celebratory reception, turning shared insights into lasting connections.
Speakers
Ashli Carter
Ashli Carter is a Lecturer in the Management Division at Columbia Business School. Currently, she teaches topics in leadership, negotiations, and cultivating a growth mindset in the MBA and Executive Education programs, as well as for CBS administrators and staff. Prior to joining CBS faculty, she taught MBA and undergraduate courses in leadership and professional ethics at NYU Stern where she was an Assistant Professor/Faculty Fellow of Management and Organizations.
Camille Korschun '02
Camille’s research focuses on the process of creating a family office or family investment company after a significant liquidity event. She is particularly interested in how entrepreneurs and families develop and reorganize around a new organizational purpose. She holds a BA from Yale University and an MBA from Columbia Business School.
Gaia Marchisio
- Contact:
- [email protected]
Gaia Marchisio, Ph.D., is a family-enterprise researcher, consultant, educator, speaker, and writer with 25+ years of impact across global family enterprises, academic institutions, corporations, public-sector organizations, and others.
Michael McGrann
- Contact:
- [email protected]
Stephan Meier
Stephan Meier is currently the chair of the Management Division and the James P. Gorman Professor of Business at Columbia Business School. He holds a PhD in Economics from the University of Zurich, was previously a senior economist at the Center for Behavioral Economics and Decision-Making at the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston and taught courses on strategic interactions and economic policy at Harvard University and the University of Zurich. His research interest is in behavioral strategy.
Isabelle Swinkels
Isabelle Swinkels is the Next Generation Leader and a board member of the Family Business Network Netherlands (FBNed), bringing fresh perspectives and innovative ideas to the world of family enterprises. With a deep-rooted connection to her family legacy as an eighth-generation member of Royal Swinkels, Isabelle's journey reflects her dedication to understanding and contributing to the success of family businesses.
Michael Zhu
Michael Zhu, a fourth-generation descendant of a distinguished Chinese lineage, presently serves as the Chief Investment Officer at Accathon Capital, his family's office. His expertise lies in meticulously managing complex private market investments on a global scale.
Patricia Angus
- Contact:
- [email protected]
Patricia Angus, JD, MIA, TEP, is Founder and CEO of Angus Advisory Group LLC, an Adjunct Professor and Founder of the Global Family Enterprise Program Columbia University’s Graduate School of Business.
Rodrigo Setubal
Rodrigo is a fourth-generation shareholder of Itaúsa, one of Brazil’s largest private conglomerates and part of the controlling block of Itaú-Unibanco, the largest bank in Latin America. He has experience in banking, startups, and strategic growth initiatives across Brazil and Chile. Rodrigo is currently pursuing an MBA at Columbia Business School, where he is a member of the Family Business Club and actively involved in leadership initiatives. He is passionate about fostering innovation within family enterprises and mentoring the next generation.
Monica Walter
Monica has more than 30 years as a successful business leader, family office executive, and educator. For over 18 years, she has been working with and advising global, multigenerational clients as a trusted advisor, consultant, mentor, facilitator, and a key member of the senior leadership team within a sophisticated, large single-family office for a five-generation family.
Felipe Feffer ’25
Felipe is a second-year MBA student at Columbia Business School, specializing in finance and asset allocation, with a multifaceted career spanning entrepreneurship, music, and investment management. He served as a partner and portfolio manager at a fund of funds. As a member of the fourth generation of the family behind Suzano, a 101-year-old forestry pulp and paper business, Felipe spent nearly a decade contributing to the Family and Foundation Council, where he played a pivotal role in governance and strategic planning. Currently, he serves on the Shareholder Council.
Ticket Prices
- Students*: $100
- CBS Alumni*: $175
- Individual: $220
- Full Table Buyout (up to 8 people): $1,500
- Note: Advisors purchasing a table must include a family enterprise attendee group as part of their reservation.
- Half Table Buyout (up to 4 people): $800
- Note: Advisors purchasing a half-table must include a family enterprise attendee group as part of their reservation.
*Alumni and students must include graduation year with your registration information.
Tickets are non-refundable.
Advisor Attendance
Advisors are welcome to attend the Family Enterprise Conference; however, space is limited and available on a first-come, first-served basis to ensure the event remains focused on members of business-owning families and those working within family enterprises. Advisors are defined as wealth planners, family enterprise consultants, business consultants, or individuals providing services to family enterprises who are not part of a business-owning family and/or do not work in a family enterprise as a non-family executive.
To ensure balance:
- Only 1 advisor per organization may attend.
- Advisors purchasing table or half-table packages must include a family enterprise attendee group as part of their reservation.
- Advisors must check the advisor box when registering to confirm their role.
We enforce a strict non-solicitation policy to create an inclusive and enjoyable experience for all participants. Advisor registrations will be reviewed and confirmed on a first-come, first-served basis, and a waiting list will be available once capacity is reached.
Our Commitment to a Safe Environment
At the Global Family Enterprise Program, we are committed to creating an inclusive and enjoyable experience for all participants. To maintain the focus on this event's purpose and to respect the interests of attendees, we have established a strict non-solicitation policy. Solicitation activities, including but not limited to selling products or services, seeking special advantages or raising funds from others on an unsolicited basis, for business, personal, or charitable benefit, are not allowed during the event. We appreciate your cooperation in creating a safe and distraction-free environment for all attendees.
This event will not be recorded or livestreamed and is off the record.