Asian family businesses should accept non-family professional managers

In an op-ed, SMU Associate Professor of Strategic Management Tan Wee Liang said that family businesses need to engage in business leadership succession as the current business leaders age, and they need to introduce professional management. He said that leadership transition could be challenging because family business leaders believe in their infallibility, they may not think it is time to identify and groom new talent, while increased human longevity and medical advances may tempt family business leaders to hold onto power. Prof Tan said that the preference for family leadership and employment could be a constraint on growth if family talent is lacking. To grow, Asian family businesses need to recruit new managers and introduce professional management practices.