Any business relies on its leaders to steer it into an uncertain future. In their quest for the best, family-owned businesses must compete with other seductive suitors: listed global players, agile disruptors and unlisted cult brands.

1 - The search

In ‘Lifecycle’ ² Amrop examined critical phases in the evolution of an FOB: birth, succession, changes in finance and ownership, transformational events and governance shifts. As long as it remains majority family-owned, these firms offer incomers an environment that they are unlikely to find elsewhere.

Amrop Partners emphasize some prime considerations for hiring organizations: will this candidate fit our culture and espouse our values? Will the chemistry work? Is our legacy safe in this person’s hands? These factors matter as much as competencies, as the executive will likely be working closely with family members.

An FOB decides to recruit. What now? The executive search professional must take the time to gain a clear (and unbiased) view of the firm’s current status and ambition. An Amrop Partner recommends that hiring organizations consider tomorrow’s governance structures when hiring today’s executives. For example, a CFO who not only provides financial acumen but who can also guide board transformation and install an audit committee.

2 - Roles

As the FOB matures, the pool of family members seeking key roles will expand. In the event of a majority sale, the C-suite team is often replaced altogether. Where majority ownership or decision-making remains in family hands, the human chess board must answer both business and family needs. FOBs may insert a family member into the CEO role and limit external hiring to technical or specialist functions: CFOs, CIOs, HR and CMOs. Whilst it would be simplistic (and wrong) to generalize, several Amrop Partners observe this tendency during earlier, more manageable iterations of an FOB.

3 - Process

The cultural fit between the candidate and FOB emerges as the prime consideration — more than for other types of business. Checking compliance demands a deep dive into an executive’s mindset. Clients may request an open-ended meeting to test the waters. The signal-spotting is constant, an Amrop Partner warns: “If you demonstrate EQ in appreciating the proposition you will likely have the EQ to appreciate the adaptability you’ll need in the role and culture. A failure to appreciate it signals failures in other areas.”

4 - Provenance

Family-owned businesses value candidates that have undergone a steady cycle of role transitions, ideally in different ownership models. An international track record is appreciated by FOBs branching out of their domestic markets, as many are having to do. But above all, in line with the cultural facet of ‘stable homogeneity’ FOBs seek an understanding of a business rather like theirs.

5 - Profile

Beyond a technical job description, what specific leadership style does an FOB seek? The FOB executive is an anchor. An incremental change agent rather than a revolutionary, she facilitates a slow-burn transformation hand-in-hand with the family, “giving comfort that you are the stable factor while other things are transitioning and changing,” as one Amrop Partner puts it. We can argue that the profile embraces two perspectives: continuity and change. Within these, eight key indicators emerge from our conversations with the Amrop Partners.

Assuring continuity and change in an FOB | 8 indicators for incoming leaders

CHANGE

• Focused: Has an eye on the ball and a quiet ambition to drive the business agenda and deliver measurable outcomes in co-decided areas.
• Agile: Is willing and able to wear multiple hats that may transcend the original role scope, and can flex to ambiguous circumstances.
• Entrepreneurial: Possesses the ownership gene - taking care of the business as if it were theirs (whilst understanding that it is not).
• Transformative: Discerns which areas in the business are most appropriate for change (must-haves, vs. nice-to-haves), leverages lived experiences of success and failure in compatible organizations.

CONTINUITY

• Humble: Understands and appreciates the company’s strengths, prioritizes its legacy over personal ego or status.
• Diplomatic: A bridge and problem-solver seeking unity in difference and gracefully conceding final decision-making to the family as necessary.
• Collaborative: Addresses the needs of multiple stakeholders, assuring a constant communication flow with the family (whether the family is in a C-Suite, advisory or ownership-only capacity).
• Patient: Understands and tolerates family processes, presence and politics, appraises the context in a reflective way with an eye on medium- to long-term outcomes.

6 - Presenting the role

An Amrop Partner meets a frequent question from founders: “how do you convince people in companies who have a better reputation and are more professionalized than us?’ The resulting value proposition is an ambassadorial exercise. It is based on the nuances of working with an FOB and adeptly expresses the role proposition.

It is however vital to manage candidate expectations — the strengths and pitfalls of a career in a family-owned business are intertwined. “We are careful in articulating the downsides. Where the company is headed and how the role needs to play into that strategy. How the person needs to go beyond the standard merit that you can bring to any company,” she says. “If a family member has stepped into this role, your ability to work with a founder or a shareholder will be important. And sometimes there are multiple family members. Either you understand that, or you don’t.”

7 - Compensation

In line with the cultural facet of ‘Expectant Caring’ a high-performing executive will be rewarded accordingly, say some Amrop Partners. “If you are good, owners are generous. They may not pay 5% this year but double your salary. They don’t pay typical money.” Another is more cautious: “It’s likely you will be paid less than for the same role in a multinational. If you accept this, it means you share the values, mission and strategy.”

Can research shed any light on the matter? One study³ found that over half of 300 family businesses it surveyed target total pay levels above the market median to attract and retain executives (whereas most publicly traded companies target at the market median). Total direct compensation rose with increasing company size.

8 - Onboarding

Given the FOB ecosystem, one Amrop Partner proposes a change of vocabulary: “Transition is a better word than onboarding. More to do with familiarization, less with doing the real job.” Another recommends spending a third of the search process on onboarding to ensure the continuity that FOBs tend to prize.

There are signals that a founder is unready to step back. “They complain that the executive isn’t ready or that there are too many challenges.” An objective observer can refute (or confirm) such statements. Their presence is part of a formally planned process subject to governance at board and/or director level. It involves milestones: “In the next six to twelve months, what success signals would you like to see?”

SOURCES

¹ Family-owned Businesses, a Human Story, Part Two: Culture (2025). Amrop.

² Family-owned Businesses, a Human Story, Part One: Lifecycle (2025). Amrop.

³ Schindler, B., Schroeder, S., Family Business Executive Pay, Insights from the 2023-2024 Compensation Survey - Family Business Magazine. The research covered wide range of sectors and revenue sizes. Respondents provided compensation data for 10 common executive positions and an overview of pay practices.