Small Town News

Business Transition Workshops Offered

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(Bismarck, N.D.) Dakota MEP and the Prairie Family Business Association are co-sponsoring a workshop designed for family-owned and closely-held businesses. "Strategies for Family-Owned and Closely-Held Businesses" will cover practical steps companies can take to make sure the transition to the next generation of management is efficient, effective and ensures the on-going success of the business.

The workshop is scheduled in Fargo, Wednesday, September 23, at the Holiday Inn, and in Sioux Falls on September 24, at the Best Western Ramkota. The workshop will run from 8:30 a.m. to noon at both locations, with registration and a continental breakfast beginning at 8 a.m. The registration fee is $95 ($75 for Prairie Family Business Association members). Those interested can register at www.dakotamep.com.

Scheduled to lead the workshops is Lise Stewart, the managing director of Galliard Group, a Boise, Idaho-based consulting firm specializing in the issues facing family-owned and closely held businesses. According to Stewart, family-owned enterprises make up 95 percent of all businesses in the U.S.

"Most people would be shocked to learn that less than 40 percent of businesses survive a transition to the second generation," says Stewart. "The three most common causes are a lack of thoughtful planning, uninformed decision-making, and mismanaged communication within the family."

According to the Next Generation Manufacturing Study conducted in 2009 by the Manufacturing Performance Institute, approximately 24 percent of manufacturers in the Dakotas have a leadership succession planned in the next five years. Another 31 percent "may have" a transition in leadership. This means that more than half of all the manufacturers in the Dakotas are considering their own next-generation leaders.

"Family businesses have the added benefit and challenge of a rich history of relationships and indepth knowledge," says Stewart. "Managed well, a family-owned business can be a source of pride, income, inspiration and healthy interdependence--a true legacy for generations to come."

Galliard Group and Dakota MEP have previously collaborated on projects in the Dakotas. "Galliard Group consults with various MEP chapters around the country," says Dan Halverson, Dakota MEP operations director. "Their work is consistently of the highest quality."

Dakota MEP is a non-profit corporation dedicated to improving the competitiveness, productivity and profitability of companies in the Dakotas. Services are focused on helping companies improve financial performance, develop customers and markets, strengthen business processes and build the capacity of employees.

The Prairie Family Business Association was founded in 1993 as South Dakota Family Business Initiative with the mission of enhancing the long-term survival and success of its family business members.

More detailed information is available from Dan Halverson, Dakota MEP, 1-866-297-8250, or Beth Adamson, Prairie Family Business Association, 1-605-782-3225.



Copyright 2009 Walsh County Press, Park River, North Dakota. All Rights Reserved. This content, including derivations, may not be stored or distributed in any manner, disseminated, published, broadcast, rewritten or reproduced without express, written consent from SmallTownPapers, Inc.

© 2009 Walsh County Press Park River, North Dakota. All Rights Reserved. This content, including derivations, may not be stored or distributed in any manner, disseminated, published, broadcast, rewritten or reproduced without express, written consent from DAS.

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