Strong Roots, Open Branches: How Families Grow Without Growing Apart

Cory: Welcome, and thank you for joining us for Strong Roots, Open Branches, How Families Grow Without Growing Apart. My name’s Cory Gagnon, and I’m a Senior Wealth Advisor of Beacon Family Office at Asante. I work alongside successful families as they navigate the complexities of wealth, business, and leadership transitions, helping them align vision, values, and legacy with clarity and purpose. I’m excited to have you join us today for what will be another fantastic conversation.

Legacy Builders Live is produced by Beacon Family Office at Asante, where we help successful families design integrated strategies for their wealth, business, and legacy. Through values-first planning and intentional stewardship, we support enterprising families in creating successful successors and securing multi-generational peace of mind. This webcast extends that mission, bringing together forward-thinking leaders and proven frameworks to help families and their advisors lead with clarity, confidence, and purpose across generations. If you have any questions during today’s session, please feel free to drop them in the Q&A box. If time permits, we’ll address a few questions live, and if not, we’ll be sure to follow up with you afterward.

Before we begin, just a quick note. The content shared during this webcast is intended for informational and educational purposes only, and does not constitute professional advice of any kind. The views and opinions expressed by our panelists are their own and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of the organizations they’re affiliated with. We encourage viewers to consult with qualified professionals regarding their own specific circumstances.

Now, let me introduce today’s panelists.

Melanie Hardy is a partner at Doing Grant Thornton LLP, where she guides families through generational transitions and legacy planning. As both a chartered professional accountant and family enterprise advisor, she combines technical expertise with first-hand understanding, gained from working within her own family agricultural business. Melanie helps families approach complex transitions with structure, empathy, and practical clarity, ensuring their financial strategies align with their long-term relationships and shared purpose. Welcome, Melanie.

Anne Evamy is the owner and advisor at Junction Point, Inc, where she specializes in facilitating family meetings for multi-generational family businesses, drawing on more than 16 years as a successful entrepreneur, having built, led, and sold her own marketing company, Anne brings first-hand insight into business ownership and transition. She helps families strengthen communication, clarify expectations, and prepare successors, ensuring both business, resilience, and family alignment through every stage of change. Welcome, Anne.

Anne: Thank you, it’s a pleasure to be here.

Cory: During today’s webcast, our goal is to explore five key questions to help families navigate change without losing their roots. We’ll look at how family enterprises can stay grounded in shared values while adapting to transitions that test stability. Through lived experience and practical insight, we’ll examine how confident decisions and intentional evaluation can support both continuity and growth.

Let’s pop to our first question. How can we, as a family, stay secure in what’s familiar, while still being open to change? And in every family enterprise, there’s this tension that’s felt at some point, wanting to protect what’s working while knowing that change is part of staying healthy. And I find that it’s a natural part of growth, but not always an easy one to manage.

Now, popping over to you, Melanie, in your experience with the families that you work with, what helps them talk about change in a way that still feels respectful to their roots?

Melanie: That’s a great question, Cory, and sometimes it all depends on the dynamic of the family. Ideally, especially when we’re bringing in the next generation, there is a little bit of a struggle in many ways where we’ve always done it this way, is kind of, or always done it, and we should continue to do it this year.

For example, in farming, farming practices, the way things are, crops that are grown, right? When calves are sold, a whole pile of things, so it can be very operational, where the new generation coming in might have some different ideas, more progressive. And so, having that conversation, and that’s where sometimes I’ll facilitate that conversation to make sure both sides are hearing, because there might be a lot of great new opportunities, but we need to ask the generation before us, you know, have you tried it? What are the pros and cons to each? Because, of course, sometimes we can consider all the pros and forget to look at the other side.

So I think the biggest thing is coming to those meetings open-minded to hear both, and realize that we’re not always going to agree, but we kind of have to step back, and maybe part of it is, okay, who is going to take the lead on which one so we can have conversations? But at the end of the day, there’s going to have to be somebody that makes that decision. And the hope to make sure that our families grow together is that it’s not always the patriarch, that we’ve shared those responsibilities with both the generation 1 or 2, and generation 3 and 4.

Cory: Great! And Anne, you’ve worked with many families who have evolved over time. What do you find helps them make those changes without losing their sense of stability or identity?

Anne: I think that you’re absolutely right, Cory, there are many changes, and it’s tension-producing, and business families face this unique tension where they’ve got all these dynamics happening, and how do they deal with the paradoxes and stability or identity. So they need to adapt to the changing markets and the generations, so each generation is going to be different, and they’ve got to do that while preserving the traditions that were built, and the value, use that to find them, if in fact they’ve gotten that far along in their evolution.

In my experience, the families who evolved successfully tend to do so by anchoring themselves in those shared values, or creating the shared values, and having a real clear sense of purpose by establishing governance structures that can provide continuity. But really important to maintain the dialogue across the generations, and as Melanie said, making sure that everybody comes to the table when there are the discussions being had that they’re open and willing to hear. And this, I think, really allows them to embrace potential innovation or changes without feeling like they’re abandoning what had been, and what their identity had been.

And so, understanding that the change becomes a new extension of themselves rather than a departure from what they knew, so that balance between tradition and adapting is what hopefully sustains them with stability and legacy. And there’s all sorts of governance structures to use to do that effectively, to provide the clarity and so on that they need to go forward.

Cory: Great! And Melanie, you mentioned not having just those rose-colored glasses, and Anne mentioned the changes in marketplace. How do you help the family understand what is just a fancy trend that might deviate our attention, versus what is that core shift that we can be leading edge, or be at the forefront, and ensuring that innovation carries us in a way that doesn’t risk the house while we’re doing it?

Melanie: That is a tricky question. I deal predominantly in agriculture, and as everybody knows right now, everything is a little bit up in the air, and decisions you made in the spring might not have been the best decisions when you look back in the fall. Or sometimes you feel like you really won that one, and it was really just happenstance. I think the biggest thing is we always make the decisions with the facts that you know today. And that’s all you can do, because sometimes we freeze because of fear.

The other is always keeping in mind, what is that long-term vision? And what we’re talking about, is that getting us to that vision, or are we kind of sidetracking a little bit? And not that it’s ever bad to change where we want to go, if that’s a necessity. However, we need to step back and say, okay, when we’re talking about this, is this going to get us to where we said our 5, 10, 20 year goal is? Or is this going to sidetrack us? And if it’s going to sidetrack us, how is that going to impact that goal? And if we take it back to what was that goal, and are we working towards that? Sometimes it helps everybody regain that focus.

Cory: Great! Any further comments on that one?

Anne: No, I think that’s a great answer. The long-term vision really helps, and be adaptable, don’t get caught up on any one right or wrong answer, because you’d never know. Just as Melanie said, things can change, particularly in the world of agriculture, and I mean, look what happened to all of us in COVID. You’re just always needing to be prepared to pivot.

Cory: Yes. And really knowing the difference between what is our long-term strategy, and what’s a tactic that we need to take because of what’s going on right now. So, whether it be an opportunity or as Melanie mentioned, this year’s been a good example with commodity prices, and specifically agriculture, what do we need to do to pivot right now while still staying true to what it is that we actually are intending to do here, as a family, as a business.

Great! Now, moving us to our second question. When we decide it’s time to make a change, what will help us move forward together with confidence? I find that knowing that change is needed is one thing, and agreeing on how to move forward is another. And in my experience, the turning point often comes when families shift from protecting that familiarity, to planning together on what’s next.

Anne, from your side, you’ve guided many owners through transition and exit planning. What approaches help them bring on board early so that momentum builds instead of having resistance?

Anne: Absolutely. And that’s the key, is to build early buy-in. So, I think that’s one of the main things. And in order to do that, I think there are seven approaches that I would suggest. The first one is to start with shared values, which we’ve already sort of touched on. But really kind of anchor the conversations for a family around what they all care about. It could be family traditions, it could be legacy, it could be a collective goal. But when people see the change as protecting or enhancing what really matters to them, I think they perhaps are more receptive, is what I’ve seen.

One of the other approaches is to make sure that with communication, you invite input early. So, you don’t have a really formalized plan yet. Allow for ideas to be generated. Listen actively, as we always say. Incorporate suggestions into it. Because then you get that early involvement. What it does is it creates a sense of ownership, and it ensures that people don’t feel like they’re being told, this is what we’re doing. So the ownership is really important.

Another one is just to frame the benefits, kind of in personal terms, to tell each of the family members how it might make life easier, might make it more meaningful. There might be different ways. Tailoring the why to each person’s priorities just helps the momentum kind of get built and move forward. Create small wins together. Do the things that get created or define progress. So it might be a family project. This is a great time at Christmas time to think about a family project that might do that, and show the benefits that sort of surround that.

Use trusted voices. So one of the other ways is there’s usually someone in the family, it could be a sibling, it could be a parent, it could be somebody older, grandparent, whatever, who carries a lot of influence, and kind of have them champion the concept and moving forward for early buy-in. Always communicate early. Silence breeds resistance, and steady communication tends to really build trust, so I would highly recommend that as an approach. And then celebrate the things that has brought the help or the support, and ensure that the gratitude is reinforcing the positive involvement from each of the family, and encourages other people to join in and participate in that transition that may be forthcoming.

Cory: I love that reminder to celebrate. This is what we’ve achieved together. That’s a great reminder, Anne.

Anne: So true.

Cory: Melanie, over to you. You often work with families where there’s several generations involved in decisions. What do you find helps them keep those conversations constructive so that everyone feels part of that process?

Melanie: That’s a good question. One of the things I really encourage is to have regular shareholder meetings, because, of course, we’re busy working in the business. Sometimes we forget to work on the business, and by doing those regular check-ins, it’s building relationships as well. So, first, you see grandpa that always saw grandson as the child that’s playing. And that grandson is now a business owner, and making some of those decisions as well. So, building that relationship helps get to the next level or next step.

And when you’re talking about what decision, the easiest thing is stick to facts. Keep our emotions out of it, come with curiosity. Then you don’t come with judgment. And so, whoever is determining that this is the way we need to go and need to do, then I encourage them, okay, let’s look at all of the aspects. Look at your financial aspects. What is the investment? What are the risks? How does that impact your existing business? Does it take it away, or does it enhance it? And how does it align with where our priorities are? Like I stated before, is it going towards that vision, our values and mission, or is it taking away from it?

And sometimes it can be as easy as, you know what, let’s try a different method of applying chemical or fertilizer to the point of, and we all know land values are huge. That’s a big decision. Are we willing to risk what we have to gain this upcoming land? And as the older generation, they worked very hard to get that operation to the size that it is. And so, coming with the respect of understanding that this is a risk, here are the risks, here’s how we can mitigate this risk, and make sure we’re protecting what we have. That helps, because, of course, they’re going to be a little bit more conservative on that part, as they should be, because they’ve worked very hard for where they’ve come. And with the values of what they are right now, land doesn’t pay for itself, so how are you going to help pay for this? Where is the funds going to come from?

So by coming with that approach, everybody has the information, and then everybody should be able to have that comment. Am I comfortable with it? Do I need more information before I can make a decision? I’m okay with it, I think we still need to look a little further, but I think this could work, or absolutely opposed. And if we have those conversations, then we can ask the reasons why. Why are you not uncomfortable? Why don’t you like this decision? Again, coming with curiosity, not judgment, so that when we’re making these decisions, it’s purely factual, so that we don’t walk away with hurt feelings, arguments, and so forth.

Cory: I really appreciate both of your views, coming into the “what’s in it for me,” understanding that I have my own needs as a member of this collective, and there might be a shared interest here, but everyone needs to think about it themselves, is what do I need from this? And the generation who wants to preserve what they’ve built. That generation who wants to make their mark, and really grow what’s already there, and that foundation.

And so, just thinking about, yes, there’s a collective goal here, but there’s also many individuals part of that collective. Anne, anything more that you wanted to add, based on what Melanie mentioned?

Anne: Not really. I think that what I liked about what Melanie said that is so important is for all family members, hopefully, to come with curiosity, not judgment, and recognize that they each are coming at it from a different perspective, and it is the long-term vision that has to be sort of front and center. So there’s the reasons why you were where you’re at, and there’s reasons why that may or may not change going forward.

Cory: Now, moving on to our next question. How can we protect our legacy while still allowing each generation to shape it in new ways? I’ve seen how powerful it is when families realize that legacy isn’t just something to preserve, it’s something to keep building. And the challenge is that growth can look different to every generation, and that’s where tension starts to show up.

And so, Melanie, when families have such a deep connection to their land, as you mentioned, or the history of their operations, what helps them evolve that legacy so it stays alive for the next generation as well?

Melanie: That’s a good question. And the biggest thing is creating that connection the next generation has to, whether it’s a farm, whether it’s the tire shop down the street, whatever it is. If they haven’t developed that connection by the time they’re an adult, it’s really hard to build that afterwards. And that’s where the love is. So the founder has worked hard, given up a lot, invested a lot. That’s their baby. And so they have that attachment. Now, as that child is growing up, if you talk about that business like your baby, not like it was the cement block hooked to your leg, but more celebrating that business. Look what it’s providing us, look at what we’re able to do. Or even if it’s generation 2, you know, look at what grandpa’s built, and we’re still able to build. It produces this for us. It allows that next generation to care about it, just like the generation before did.

And that is an emotional tie. That’s not factual, it’s an emotional tie, that pride, hey, if it’s a building down the street, my name is on that building, that you feel that pride, or my grandpa broke that land, you feel that pride. That’s what you need to build in that next generation, because when they have pride for it, they’re also going to want to nurture it and grow it further. But if there’s no attachment, then unfortunately, it’s hard to get that next generation to have buy-in.

Cory: That’s so good. I think just how important stories are in that emotional connection, and ensuring, age-appropriate, that we’re telling those stories, and that the narrative really does follow the intention, because, as you say, Melanie, that block tied to your ankle, they’ll remember that. And it’s hard to unwind those emotional connections that maybe were unintentionally solidified at that young age.

Anne, you’ve spent time in communities where legacy and leadership are closely linked. How do families keep their reputation and share values strong, while still giving space for change?

Anne: I’m going to answer that in just a second. I think it’s really interesting what Melanie pointed out. It’s powerful and emotional, particularly when you’ve got generational continuity when it involves land, which is kind of, how do we then transfer that kind of concept to families that might just be in business, where the businesses may come and go, possibly? Or it might be a long-term business, it’s very different. So with the agriculture and land, it’s powerfully emotional. And not that it can’t be, as I say, with a business, but I think what the crossover thing would be shared symbols. So in the situation with agricultural families, the symbol is the land, and that’s sort of what keeps them together.

So one of the anchoring, sort of, reputation and values that I think about with families, and what keeps them together, is having some kind of a shared symbol. So it might not be land, but it could be a cottage or a home. It could be a family crest. It could be sort of a cherished heirloom, something that’s tangible that just kind of reinforces that continuity and pride. One family that I’m close to has named a park, as an example. And so that’s a shared place, and a place of pride, where, as I say, or it might be the name on a building, or it might be a business.

But if the business comes and goes, how do you maintain and still anchor all your values when something’s left? So that’s where the two other things I would suggest are, storytelling, which Melanie touched on as well, but just rituals, having that continuity really helps strengthen that sense of pride, connection, and bond to the family. So celebrate milestones, retell origin stories, how did grandpa and grandma come here, what happened, and maintaining those sort of traditions throughout.

And then the other thing is really role modeling, really looking to those elders in your family and leaders who are demonstrating the integrity, their generosity, the respect in their daily actions, to those outside the family and inside, because values are lived, versus not just spoken. So, how are people actually expressing those values? And then for the next generation that maybe doesn’t have that history and strength, creating space for them to be able to question and reinterpret why, and where, and how those came to be, and just contribute. Hopefully, this is back to the curiosity of every generation, is that they can contribute their new perspectives and not be shunned or pushed away for those because this is the new generation.

And then having flexible traditions. So being able to preserve the spirit of the rituals, but kind of adapt the forms. So you might take an old tradition and just reflect modern lifestyle changes in some way. So it might be just a different kind of activity. And just always think about those changes as an extension of the values, not a departure from them.

Cory: Amazing! I really appreciate that, the spirit behind what it is that’s been done as time changes. There are many people who are willing to throw that baby out with the bathwater and say, this doesn’t serve us, and I think that there can be some disrespect in a lot of ways, versus what was the spirit, and how do we adapt to who we are today, and still cherish who we were in the past. So that’s so nicely said there, Anne.

Moving us on. As we plan for the future, how can we make sure our plans are both secure enough to protect us, and flexible enough to adapt as our lives change? Once families agree that change is needed, the next challenge is building plans that last without locking themselves in. We mentioned that long-term strategy. How can we stay flexible? I find that the best structures seem to create both clarity and that flexibility, but that the balance can be really hard to get right.

Anne, in your experience guiding owners through transitions, what makes a plan truly adaptable, something that keeps the business ready for what’s next without creating uncertainty and unnecessary risk?

Anne, did you catch that one?

Anne: I did, sorry, it’s just a little freezing. I’m, as I said, out in the country, so sometimes it can wobble in and out, thanks to Starlink. Anyway, that’s a great question. I did hear the majority of that, and I think it’s a great question. An adaptable exit and transition plan absolutely requires that you balance the clarity and the flexibility. And, like anything, it starts with really figuring out your core values and what the endurance of the long-term vision will be, but popping in some options to allow a business to really respond to changing markets and family needs. I mean, family needs are always changing, or leadership dynamics, and those can change as well.

The tool that is most helpful, I think, in prepping for that and anticipating multiple possible futures, is using scenario-planning. So creating the structures that you can pivot without undermining your stability. So if you’ve thought through all of those potential scenarios. And so, when you’re thinking about when I talk about family needs, how is the family growing, at what point is the family going to age into the business, or do you want them to age in? Or what happens if you have a leadership change? What happens if we have another COVID, or in Melanie’s situation in agriculture, things change on the commodities side. So having really strong governance.

Obviously, that all links into your decision-making, your transparent communication, and sort of clear pathways can hopefully reduce unnecessary risk, and then just having contingency measures to ensure that the business is ready, so kind of knowing all your options A, B, C, by doing this scenario planning. But remain nimble, have these protections in place, but still remain nimble enough to seize new opportunities.

Cory: Awesome! And Melanie, from your perspective, helping families through transitions and succession, how do you make sure that the plans that are built give them that security and space to adjust when life changes?

Melanie: Well, the biggest thing is the plan that is built is their plan, and that’s the first thing when we meet. I tell them, I’m not building you a plan, you’re going to build a plan, and I’m going to assist you by asking questions, very similar to what Anne was saying. Here’s some scenarios. Let’s walk through these scenarios, and what-ifs. And also, when do you feel the next generation is ready? How will we make them ready? What’s the learning plan? Because it’s not just financial, it’s not just from a tax perspective. There’s a learning plan, identifying the strengths and weaknesses of those existing and those coming in so that we can set them up for success. If we have somebody who is very good at the financial end, then why don’t we embrace that, as opposed to making them do more on the operational, or vice versa?

The other thing is to recognize that we should be visiting this frequently, and it’s fluid, because there are a lot of things out of our control, and we might need to pivot one way or another. It could be a sudden illness, or it could be economic. There’s many ways. And so we need to step back and say, okay, if that’s going to happen, how can we pivot? What can we do? Although it’s not great to talk about, sometimes things don’t always work out. So if we have to have an exit strategy for one individual, how does that work without impacting the operation going forward? Because at the end of the day, if the goal is to protect the legacy, that’s our main goal, and that’s why we’re doing all of this planning, to make sure it grows and continues to grow, no matter what happens, whether it’s a positive or a negative.

And by going through a lot of these questions, again, you think about it from a question, you’re coming with curiosity. It hasn’t happened yet, so the emotion’s not in there. You can build all of those details into that plan, and keeping it fresh, reviewing it. Usually we’ll have an AGM and let’s review that. Is there anything we’re concerned about? Is there anything we need to add? And then we just keep revisiting it to the point where it’s in the forefront of everybody’s mind so that we have that for big decisions that happen, big life events that happen.

Cory: Awesome! Anne, when you talk about scenario planning, and Melanie got into some of those things that can happen. Anything else, without dwelling on all the negative things and so many risks in entrepreneurship, but anything where you found to be really a great exercise, whether it be something that maybe helped a family get to a place and be prepared for something that did happen, or just maybe shifting perspective?

Anne: Yes, and I don’t mean to dwell on the negative. I hear the question you’re asking. I think that, in my experience in helping businesses stage their businesses for a transition, people don’t think about a lot of these things. And often, sadly, it is some of the five D’s, right? The five Ds are death, disagreement, disability, divorce, and distress, and they happen. And how do you prepare for those? I know that’s a little bit on the negative side.

There’s lots of positive things that happen in families too. Where people get different opportunities and may leave the fold. So, back to thinking through all of those things, and having, as Melanie said, ongoing communication. It’s always fluid. You’ve got to be prepared for that, and they’re not always easy conversations to have, especially for the 5Ds. They’re kind of sad, and they take you, perhaps the wrong direction, but if you’re not prepared, you’re really putting your family at more risk, or the business, the long-term success of the business, at risk. So it is wise to at least have considered them, even when they are negative, and you want to have a more positive outlook for the future.

And back to what Melanie said, these are non-financial decisions, these are really life decisions, and when you’re looking at where all of your family members are in the stages of life, it is really valuable to kind of see the facts. Back to the facts. This is true. This is where grandma and grandpa are. This is where siblings 1, 2, and 3, this is where mom and dad are. Those kinds of things. And laying that out visually really helps for families to understand what the reality is of the situation, not just, just talking about it.

Cory: Those 5Ds are not pleasant to think about, but when you’ve properly planned, it sure is nice to have those plans when one of those things does come knocking on the door.

Cory: Moving us on. How can our family turn change into a source of strength that helps us grow, rather than something that disrupts us? Every family enterprise goes through seasons of change. The ones that I find come out stronger seem to have something in common, and we talked about those shared beliefs and shared values. They tend to treat change as a part of their rhythm, and not a threat to it. find that if we can put it as a place that we understand and appreciate, and it’s a thing that’s there to help, rather than a threat. That change of perspective does help.

Melanie, from your angle, where or what do you notice in families who handle the transition and change well? And what attitudes or habits make the biggest difference that you find?

Melanie: That’s a really good question. I feel like the ones that are most successful, they keep things in mind. All of us in family enterprise know this pre-circle model, right? There’s the family, there’s the business, and there’s the management. Being mindful of what we’re talking about helps, and being mindful when we are talking about it. Because a family business, it can get sticky, because not all families are in the business. And so if we’re always talking business at family functions, that’s not a good thing. We’re alienating non-family members, and we’re also not allowing our family members that are in the business to enjoy family. So we need to be very cognizant in having family events that are family, nothing to do with the business and building those relationships.

The other habits that I find is in the business side, whether it’s management side, a lot of, the more successful ones kind of have a lane they stick to, so to speak. So, they’re the ones that will manage that part of the operation. They will come to the meetings with these suggestions, and of course, everybody has a voice with regards to that. But there’s little to no micromanaging, so you don’t get that frustration that you would inside the business. And it’s mainly the relationships. You’re building confidence, because if that individual’s not being micromanaged, they can build their confidence. They also feel comfortable going to the predecessor or one of the other individuals in there for advice, coming to the group for advice.

But again, making mindful of this is a business management decision. We’re not talking about, as shareholders, do we get this dividend? What’s happening here? We’re talking about how do we manage. So being very mindful of what the conversation is also helps with the operation. And all of that helps with the transition, because if you have, okay, I’m going to mentor my daughter to do this part, then if she has questions, she can come to me, but this is going to be her part. My education is focused on that. She doesn’t have to learn everything. She can learn what she’s doing. She doesn’t have to hear about everything, but that’s not where she really has to have the expertise. Where little Jimmy maybe is mentored by somebody else, and maybe has to do with marketing the cattle. So that is his expertise, and so that’s what he is learning, that’s his strength.

We don’t have to be everything to everybody. We’re coming with all of our strengths, we’re building that respect and confidence so that, again, all of us are focused on making sure this transition is successful. Because there’s many stories out there of what happens when it’s not, and it’s never great. It impacts family, it impacts finances, it impacts everything. So I think being very mindful, and it has to be very purposeful to make sure that we’re doing those practices that you see a lot of big businesses do when you’re dealing with third parties. You’ve got to treat your family business like a big business. You have to treat it just as you would if you were a CEO of a big company. Everybody has their divisions. If you treat that business like a big business, then you will be able to address transitions. If there’s an issue, you have to be able to address that. 

You have to have hard conversations, and you have to recognize that not all conflicts are bad. Healthy conflict is a way to grow, and we need to be uncomfortable. We need to be able to feel like we can come forward with our observations, or where we’re being troubled, and know that that’s going to be received well. And I feel like those that appear to be the ones that fall off the table because they haven’t spoken those. They’ve spoken the conflict, they’ve spoken the issues, but probably to their spouse or to somebody else, but not addressing those that need to be addressed. And I feel like a lot of times, that transition, it’s not the operation. It’s not running the farm, it’s not having the conversations that you need to have when those issues arise.

Cory: It’s a good reminder, Melanie, to understand what room I am in, and what I am hearing. And as much as we want to run a family business like a big business, if I restructure and fire my sister and my son, it still does affect the family. So we need to make sure that we’re handling some of those dynamics, but understanding that we do have something to do here. And when are we doing it, how are we doing it, is so important.

And Anne, when families are facing uncertainty or big decisions, what do you find helps them stay confident and connected, instead of having that overwhelm seep in by all the change that’s happening?

Anne: I think I’ll just sort of play on Melanie a little bit. Being a family business and the three-circle model that we all know so well, you get the complexity where those meet, when you think of the Venn diagram where family meets business and ownership. And it’s kind of like a mobile, if you think of the mobiles we put above our baby’s cribs. When one moves, it affects so many other parts of the family, and it can upset the apple cart, so to speak. But I think, what I’ve really experienced in the family meetings that I facilitate, the relief of having consistency, in having an unbiased person, leading the discussions, because some of these discussions are so difficult to have. Just as Melanie said, how do you talk about the things that you might share with your spouse, the pillow talk, but you can’t share with your mom, your dad, your brother, your sister, because it’s just overwhelmingly awkward, and what will happen if it goes sideways.

I am always just amazed at how relieved families are to come out of these relatively consistent family meetings. Depends on the family, but you can just feel them going, oh god, I got that off my chest, or it’s been addressed, and I didn’t have to take the heat because it was brought up, in a way that you’re not attributing your, I forget what the word is, but it really helps a family, address those things. So hopefully that answers a bit of it.

When families face uncertainty of big decisions, to stay confident, they really need to ground themselves in their shared values and this open communication that I’m talking about. And if they have created that opportunity by having consistent formal family meetings, where they formalize the process of having that, it really builds confidence about the why behind the decisions. It helps people align with the long-term vision that the family might have. And I think most importantly, it also allows for all voices to be heard, which is super important. All the concerns get acknowledged, as difficult as they might be. They can clearly define the roles, like Melanie was talking about, who’s doing what, based on, perhaps, their strengths, or their interests, or time in their life, their chapters. But creating that space for dialogue to actually happen in a safe environment, where you’ve created, obviously, those boundaries for a family, celebrating whatever small steps that have been made, and then really leaning on the trusted traditions can help kind of reduce that feeling of being completely overwhelmed.

As these families go through the changes, hopefully it’s less about the disruption and more about the collective journey. We’re on this together, and we’re honoring our heritage, what came before, and the excitement of what might be coming from our future generations.

Cory: Great! I think it’s so important. And you mentioned the values that we’ve stated are not just something that are on paper, or etched into the glass at the head office, or part of the operations. It’s really something that we can anchor decisions to. This is our values, and here’s why we decided to do this. I think that that’s so important, that it’s not just an exercise to say, yes, we have values, and we did that three years ago, and nobody ever looked at it. Really anchoring ourselves to what it is, why we’re here, and why we’re making those decisions.

Anne: And super important for the family, however one defines their family in these discussions, but you see, I’ve seen it happen so often, where having the spouses potentially as part of some of those discussions, not necessarily just the business discussions, but the family, and really helping them understand, because they might see it, but to articulate it with words can help, and they can consistently go back to those \and really understand. Because when you’re the newbie coming into a family to understand why this is the way that it is, and what the historical reasons are, might not be right, or might not make sense, but this is how we came to this, and it kind of gives confidence, maybe, to everybody in the family.

Cory: So before we wrap up, I don’t see any questions in the question box, I’d love to give each of you a chance to share one final thought. It could be a key takeaway, piece of advice, or even a reminder of something that you’d like our audience to carry away with them after our conversation today. Melanie, I’ll start with you.

Melanie: I think you can hear the common theme. Communication is key. Honest communication. And I think when you have that, you can achieve what you want to achieve. You hear a lot about succession plans, you hear a lot about policy, but you just have those honest communications, get the expectations out there, get the concerns, the fears out there, and have that conversation.

Cory: Great! And, Anne, over to you for your final word.

Anne: I echo what Melanie has said, for sure. I think recognizing change is inevitable. We’re always going to change on this journey. And be flexible. Obviously, open communication and transparent communication is so critical. Start it early within your family, and do it consistently, even if it’s only once a year. It doesn’t have to be formal, but formalize the process of allowing for open dialogue to happen. And have an agenda, have some structure to it, so that you can address some of the things that are there. And I loved what Melanie said at the beginning, come with curiosity. Don’t come with judgment. Easier said than done, but if that’s sort of at the forefront, and that’s the MO, the modus operandi that can really help allow for open dialogue.

Cory: Fantastic! Well, thank you both for sharing those final reflections. And I want to thank you for sharing so much of your expertise and experiences with us today. Thank you to everyone who joined us live, everyone who tuned in to our recording. Today’s conversation really highlighted how families can move forward through change without losing sight of who they are. Whether it’s making decisions together, adapting to the plans that have long been held, or allowing each generation to contribute in new ways, shared efforts, that makes all the difference. And when families stay connected and open, curious, and aligned with those shared values, something beautiful can happen as they grow together.

If today’s insights sparked ideas or raised questions for your family, for your clients, I invite you to stay connected with Legacy Builders. We’ve got a few different ways. Our newsletter, featuring curated insights, practical strategies, and invitations to events like today. Those are delivered to your inbox every second Friday. Listen to our Legacy Builders podcast, where we go deep with global thought leaders and family enterprise experts. And stay tuned for our next Legacy Builders Live. We’re looking forward to kicking off 2026 with another great conversation, and we hope that everyone can join us. So, thank you again, Melanie and Ann, and enjoy the rest of your day.

Melanie: Thank you.

Anne: Thank you.