Since 2016, the Brown Brothers Harriman Family Business Leadership Speaker Series has brought top family business leaders from around the world to Columbia Business School. These sessions, often moderated by CBS faculty, cover a wide range of topics from generational transitions and board leadership to sustainability and family office strategies. It's a chance to hear directly from those at the forefront of the family business world for their valuable perspectives that bridge the gap between theory and practice.
Supported by Brown Brothers Harriman, this series offers unique insights and interactions with students, alumni, scholars, and friends.
Past Events
Demystifying Family Offices: Expert Insights for Lasting Wealth
Tuesday, April 16, 2024 | Columbia Business School
The Global Family Enterprise Program hosted an insightful event moderated by Professor Harry Mamaysky, the panel featured Suzanne Brenner, Joel Gantcher, and Brandon Laughren '94, who discussed the complexities of family offices from both investment and governance perspectives.
Attendees learned about optimizing generational wealth management, governance considerations for long-term success, and real-world strategies for family office structures. The panelists provided valuable insights and answered questions, engaging with the audience on key topics.
This event was ideal for those involved in or considering family wealth management. Attendees left with actionable insights and connections to navigate the evolving landscape of family offices. Overall, it was a successful and informative session that offered a deeper understanding of the field.
Leadership Unveiled: A Conversation with Lulu C. Wang '83
Monday, October 30, 2023 | Columbia Business School
Lulu C. Wang is the CEO and Chair of Tupelo Capital Management, which she founded in 1998 for hedge fund partnerships, and transitioned into a family office in 2008. In this conversation with Stella Wang '24, she explored the essence of identity, cultural differences in leadership, navigating a changing world as a female leader, embracing humanistic leadership values, and how you can influence and be influenced by family enterprises, even if you're not part of one.
BBH Speaker Series with Jose Eduardo Siman '69
Chairman of the Board, Milady Associates
Wednesday, June 7, 2023 | Columbia Business School
Jose Eduardo Siman '69 considers himself fortunate to have been born into a family business (Siman Department Stores) owned by a family with impressive entrepreneurial spirit, deep ethical and moral principles, and a belief in the vital importance of education to the success of future generations. In this fireside chat with Professor Gaia Marchisio, attendees learned from Jose's impressive story, from getting his MBA at CBS, working outside the family business, and becoming Chairman of the Board of a holding company for diversified family-owned businesses across retail, consumer finance, apparel manufacturing, franchisees to global brands, and real estate operating in 25+ countries across the Americas and the Caribbean.
Keeping It All Together: The Steel Warehouse Story
Monday, February 13, 2023 | Columbia Business School
Nathan Lerman, Vice President of Government Affairs & Corporate Development
Steel Warehouse
Founded in 1947, Steel Warehouse is a family-owned premier steel operator and service center with distribution, shipping, and processing capabilities providing slit coil, sheet, plate, and cold-rolling. Over the past 75 years and 3 generations, the family has grown to 500 members worldwide. In this engaging session, participants learned from Nathan Lerman, who serves as Vice President of Government Affairs & Corporate Development for Lerman Enterprises. In conversation with Professor Gaia Marchisio, Nathan walked through the history of the company, its evolution over time, his decision to join, and much more.
BBH Speaker Series with Andrew Gundlach '01
Thursday, December 1, 2022 | Columbia Business School
Columbia Business School Board Member
Adjunct Associate Professor, Finance
Global Family Enterprise Program Advisory Board Chair
Heilbrunn Center Board Member
President/CEO, Bleichroeder LP
Director, First Eagle Holdings, Inc
An exclusive evening with Andrew Gundlach '01, CBS Board Member, CEO/President of Bleichroeder LP, and Director, First Eagle Holdings, Inc. He discussed asset management for family offices, trends in the industry, and career opportunities for MBA students. This was an exclusive opportunity to hear from an industry leader who teaches the highly rated (application only) CBS Seminar in Wealth Management. An active member of the Global Family Enterprise Program Advisory Board, which he chairs, Mr. Gundlach shared valuable insights into the future of family enterprise.
Transformation in Family Enterprise
June 15, 2022 |The Penn Club of New York
Ashley Fina, former CEO & President of Michael C. Fina
Ashley Fina, former CEO & President of Michael C. Fina Recognition and current coach, consultant, and advisor to start ups and family businesses shared how she transformed fine goods retailer Michael C. Fina Recognition's service business to B2B SaaS and exited this division. She shared her expertise on transformation, business strategy, and making crucial business decisions.
The discussion was moderated by Benjamin Persofsky, Senior Vice President, Executive Director of the BBH Center for Family Business with an introduction by Global Family Enterprise Program Advisory Board member Amy Binder '94, Co-Founder & CEO, RF|Binder Partners.
Leading from the Top: A Board Chair's Insights
March 3, 2022 | Hybrid
Meghan Juday, Chairman of the Board at IDEAL Industries
Meghan Juday, Chair of the Board of IDEAL Industries and founder of The Lodis Forum, the first peer group of women board chairs, discussed how she ascended to the role of Chairman of the Board of IDEAL Industries, her family's 105-year-old business, at a pivotal time. This fourth-generation leader shared her expertise on governance excellence and what helps family businesses thrive.
The discussion was moderated by Professor Patricia Angus, Managing Director of the Global Family Enterprise Program.
400 Years of Luxury
October 25, 2021 | Hybrid
Olivier Mellerio '72 & Clémence Mellerio-Jacques of Mellerio dits Meller
Father and daughter Olivier Mellerio '72 and Clémence Mellerio-Jacques sat down with Professor Patricia Angus, Managing Director of the Global Family Enterprise Program to answer the question: How does a business last 400 years? Olivier and Clémence discussed their family's rich history in both France and Italy, the unique relationship between jeweler and client, and why they have remained "boutique" while other jewelry companies continue to expand.
This program was presented in hybrid format, allowing students to join from the classroom, while even more alumni, students, and friends joined virtually from around the world.
BBH Speaker Series with Dilhan C. Fernando
June 8, 2021 | Virtual
CEO, Dilmah Tea (Sri Lanka)
Dilhan C. Fernando, CEO, Dilmah Tea (Sri Lanka), and JP Kuehlwein, Adjunct Professor, Columbia Business School, spoke to a group of students, alumni and friends in June via Zoom. He explained how sustainability and purpose were embedded from the start in his forward-thinking family enterprise. Dilhan credits his father's emphasis on humility, kindness and faith as his guiding principles. This was a truly inspiring story that illustrates the positive power of family firms!
BBH Speaker Series with Stephen Puschel '11 and Timur Yumusaklar '11
January 21, 2021 | Virtual
Owner and CEO/President (respectively), Schumacher & Co.
We had the pleasure of welcoming owner Stephen Puschel '11 and CEO/President Timur Yumusaklar '11 of F. Schumacher & Co., a fifth-generation interior design company. CBS classmates and friends, Stephen and Timur shared candid insights about the evolution of the 132-year-old company, their impressive turnaround story, and how to manage relationships within a family enterprise.
Three lucky guests—Leslie Kuo, Rohan Morbia, and Igor Vishnyakov—received copies of their latest book: S Is for Style: The Schumacher Book of Decoration by Dara Caponigro.
BBH Speaker Series with Richard Eu
October 26, 2020 | Virtual
Chairman of the Eu Yan Sang International Ltd (EYSI) (Singapore)
Richard Eu joined us from Singapore to speak to the CBS Family Business Program about his Traditional Chinese Medicine retail chain Eu Yan Sang (230 stores in Asia and online), his approach to succession (5 generations of legacy), and how to successfully negotiate cross-cultural nuances across business and family.
With his children in the audience, Richard shared how Eu Yan Sang manages to balance the old and new, honoring its heritage while continuously evolving to make its products more accessible to the modern customer. He delved into how cultural influences passed down by his ancestors, including the Eu family poem inscribed with values to care for mankind and his family's Western education (Richard's uncle went to Columbia!), have had a big impact on subsequent generations. Finally, Richard expressed his love for playing music with his family, reminding us that business is only one portion of family!
BBH Speaker Series with Sajjad Ebrahim '73
June 17, 2020 | Virtual
Chairman and CEO, Lark Investments INC. (Canada)
BBH Speaker Series with Corinne Mentzelopoulos
November 6, 2019 | Columbia Business School
Château Margaux
Cultivating the Future, Rooted in the Past: Antinori Wines
June 20, 2019 | Faculty House
Alessia Antinori, Marchesi Antinori
Making it Work: Two Careers, One Family, and a Lasting Legacy
April 4, 2019 | Columbia Business School
Bram Bluestein '71, Bluestein & Associates (Family Office) and Ilene Gordon, Ingredion Incorporated
BBH Speaker Series with Paul Sullivan
December 6, 2018 | Columbia Business School
NYT Columnist and Author
The Perfect Mix: Leading with Innovation and Inspiration
June 5, 2018 | Penn Club of New York
Jodi Berg, President and CEO, Vitamix
BBH Speaker Series with Walter and Shirley Wang '93
April 12, 2018 | Columbia Business School
Shirley Wang '93, CEO of Plastpro & Walter Wang, CEO & President of JM Eagle
BBH Speaker Series with Tim Belk
November 15, 2017 | Penn Club of New York
Retired CEO and Chairman, Belk, Inc.
BBH Speaker Series with Güler Sabancı
April 25, 2017 | Columbia Business School
Chairman of Sabancı Holding and Founding President of Sabancı University, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Sabancı Foundation and Chairman of the Sakıp Sabancı Museum
BBH Speaker Series with Jack Mitchell
May 22, 2017 | Landmarc Restaurant
Chairman of Mitchells Stores, a three-generation family business that operates nationally-renowned retail specialty stores.
Razak Dawood '68
November 16, 2016 | Columbia Business School
Razak Dawood '68, Chairman of Descon
