Transitions East 2017
The conference for family businesses by family businesses
This conference is for family companies and enterprises of all sizes and ages.
Transitions East 2017 will address:
- The Successful Family Leader
- Family Employment: What Works and What Doesn’t
- Engaging Family Members Not in the Business
- Family Councils and Family Governance Strategies
- The NextGen's Role in the Family Business
Special Bonus: To extend and enhance conference learning, all attendees will receive a free one year's subscription to Family Business Magazine (or a one-year extension to their current subscription). Subscription includes access to Family Business' online archive of more than 750 articles, organized by topic.
We continually strive to enhance your conference experience:
- Smaller group sessions to facilitate discussion.
- Topic-based expert briefings to allow you and your family members to drill down more deeply into areas of specific interest or need.
- Some families bring family members who do not attend the conference itself. We've created the opportunity for these families to schedule a working family meeting prior to and after the conference, with a professional facilitator. (Limited space available, please contact Justine Wood at 703-850-5497 for details). Please note: our hotel room block allows families to book rooms before and after the conference, at our group rate, to extend the duration and value of your visit.
- Family Business Basics--a pre-conference session focused on key family business terms and ideas, and on how to get the most out of the conference itself.
Transitions features:
- Speakers from family companies: Our focus is on speakers from family enterprises, sharing real-life problems and solutions.
- Intimate, open environment: Limited attendance, and a private "safe harbor" environment in which to openly share challenges and opportunities with other families.
- Collaborative discussions: Opportunities to work through family issues via guided discussions.
- No-Sell Environment: Conference sponsors understand and commit to participating as thought leaders and experts, and are restricted from actively selling their products and services.
- Special content and sessions for next-generation and married-in family members
- Networking with families like yours: Hosted networking, opening reception, meals, breaks and workshops are all designed to allow you to meet many family enterprise attendees.
- Family focus: Brought to you by family-owned Family Business Magazine, we use family-owned or controlled hotels, transportation services, restaurants and service providers whenever possible. We believe in, and invest in, America's family businesses.
- Hosted family meetings: For attending families who want to meet before and after the conference, professionally facilitated. Limited availability.
Featured Speakers
Lansing Crane
Former Chairman and CEO, Crane & Co. Inc.; Chairman, Canal Insurance Company, SOG Specialty Knives & Tools and Wells Enterprises; Director, Ginsey Home Solutions
Chris Herschend
Vice Chairman, Herschend Enterprises; Learning Chair, YPO-WPO Global Family Business Network
Register Today!
Registration Information
Please Note: Attendance at this conference is limited to members, owners, senior executives (including non-family executives and non-family board members) or shareholders of family-owned businesses whose primary business is other than advising family-owned businesses. Senior advisers to family businesses may attend only with family members. Attendance is strictly limited to the first 75 family businesses/enterprises who register.
Past attendees of any Transitions Conference receive an additional 10% discount on their registration fees.
All registrants receive a free one year subscription to Family Business Magazine ($79 value), or a one-year extension to their current subscription. Subscriptions include free online access to Family Business Magazine's extensive online archive of articles, organized by topic. Registration fees do not include hotel or travel expenses.
Family Company Attendees
$1,850--First Attendee from your family company
$1,350--Each additional attendee (Age 30 and above)
$1,150--Each additional Next Generation attendee (age 29 or below)
For general questions on attendance or help with registration, please contact Justine Wood at (703) 850-5497. Please register all attendees from your company on the Registration Form at the same time. If you determine at a later time that you need to add registrants, we will need to process the registrations offline in order to apply the discounted registration fees. To register offline, please email registrant information (name, title, company name, mailing address, phone number and email address) to jwood@familybusinessmagazine.com. For the payment, please call Jerri Smith at 215-405-6071 to provide the credit card number or use the Credit Card Authorization Form available here.
All attendees will be verified prior to acceptance of registration. A family company's advisers may attend only if accompanied by one or more family company members. Other family company advisers may contact Mike Bachman at (215) 405-6070 for information on attending.
Registration price includes all conference materials, as well as breakfast, lunch and dinner on March 23, breakfast and lunch on March 24, and a welcome reception with buffet dinner on March 22, as well as refreshment breaks.
Registration contact:
Justine Wood
Events Director
jwood@familybusinessmagazine.com
(703) 850-5497
Cancellation policy: All conference cancellations must be made in writing and sent to Justine Wood, Transitions Events Director 13631 Maidstone Lane, Potomac, MD 20854, or emailed to jwood@familybusinessmagazine.com. Registrants who cancel more than four weeks prior to the program date are entitled to a full refund of the registration fee less an administrative fee of $150 per registrant; if canceled within four weeks, but more than 10 business days prior to the conference date, 50% of the conference registration fee will be refunded less an administrative fee of $150 per registrant; within ten business days of the conference date and no shows, no refund is possible. Family Business Magazine may cancel the program if attendance does not meet required levels; in case of cancellation or rescheduling, full refunds of registration fees will be made. Travel fares and hotel deposits cannot be reimbursed.
Program
- Cybersecurity, Social Media Policies and Family Risk Management: F. Douglas Raymond III, Partner, Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP
- The Family Office—What It Is and What It Does: Shannon Zur, Family Office Director, Vogel Consulting
- Family Education Policies and Practices: Anna Nichols, Director of Communications, Altair Advisers LLC
- Effective Family Employment Policies: Mark Haranzo and Clyde Tinnen, Partners, Withers Bergman LLP
- Taxes, Trusts and Estate Issues: Mark Nash, Partner, Personal Financial Services, PwC
- Managing Wealth’s Impact on the Family: Jill Shipley, Managing Director, Family Dynamics and Education, Abbot Downing
- How Governance Entities Should Interact—Family Council, Owner’s Committee, the Board and Trusts: Steven R. Walker, General Counsel, Secretary, and Director of Board Advisory Services, National Association of Corporate Directors
About Conference
Transitions East 2017 is sponsored by Family Business Magazine, and is the only conference created for family companies, by family companies.
Who Should Attend
Attendance at this conference is strictly limited to owners, shareholders, family members, in-laws and executives of 75 family businesses/enterprises. The conference is designed to facilitate conversation on important family issues among generations. There is special programming for family business members aged 15-29, and for those who have married-in to the family business.
The Transitions conference is for family companies and family offices of all sizes. Approximately one third of attendees represent companies with revenues of under $25 million, one third of attendees have revenues of between $26 million and $300 million; and one third have revenues of over $300 million. And approximately a third of attendees are in the third generation or less; a third were in generations 4 and 5; and third were part of companies more than 6 generations old. What all attendees share is a desire to see their family enterprise grow successfully through generational transitions.
68% of attendees at Transitions are coming to the conference for the first time; 100% of attendees at our last conference say they'll attend again, and that they'd recommend the conference to other family members.
NOTE: All attendees will be vetted to ensure that they are family company leaders, members or shareholders. This event is only for family-run companies or enterprises. Senior advisers to family companies may attend ONLY with the family company they represent.
For further information, contact conference director David Shaw at (301) 963-6162 or email dshaw@familybusinessmagazine.com.
Registration
Registration fees do not include hotel or travel expenses. Due to the customization of the conference seating and session assignments, registrations need to be submitted at least one week prior to the start of the conference. On-site registration is not available.
Attire
The dress code for the conference is business casual to casual. Meeting room temperatures will vary, so please bring and wear the appropriate layers of clothing to ensure your personal comfort.
Propose a Topic or Speaker
Contact Peter Begalla, Conference and Education Director, (386) 785-7856 or email pbegalla@familybusinessmagazine.com. Please note that the conference extends a complimentary registration for conference speakers. In addition, conference speakers are featured in Family Business and Directors & Boards magazines and websites. Speakers are responsible for their own expenses, to include hotel, meals, and travel. Proposals promoting company products or services will not be considered.
Advisers and Sponsors
If your company provides services to family businesses, please considering sponsoring the conference. Access to Transitions conference attendees—by attending the conference, a tabletop exhibit and/or by participating as a moderator/panelist is only available to conference sponsors. Alternatively, if you are an adviser to family businesses, you may register to attend the conference with a family member for a business you advise. Contact Mike Bachman at (215) 405-6070, or email mike.bachman@familybusinessmagazine.com.
Student Registration
Students who are interested in attending the conference should apply through the standard attendee registration process (submit a registration form for consideration). Complimentary student registrations are not available.
Press
Press passes are not available for this conference.
What Attendees Say About Transitions
Confirmed Speakers
Sam Agnew
Director and Family Council Chair, The Agnew Company
Jack Ouellette
Executive Chairman, American Textile Company
Kyle Fernley
Director, Fernley and Fernley
Kyle Fernley is a graduate of the University of Colorado at Boulder holding a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Psychology. He currently serves as Executive Director for the Society for Social Work Leadership in Health Care and CFA Society of Philadelphia. He is the fifth generation of this family company who origins date back to 1886.
Kyle also serves as Director of Premier Meetings by Fernley, a strategic partner of Fernley and Fernley where his responsibilities include hotel contract negotiation for conventions concerning groups over 300 guests.
Kyle is currently serving on the Mid Atlantic Society of Association Executives Board of Directors, Conference Committee and Marketing Task Force Committee. He served on an additional 3 MASAE committees in 2014 and was also a presenter at the 2014 MASAE Annual Conference.
Kyle is also an active volunteer in his community serving as a volunteer in Big Brothers Big Sisters of America and is founder and member the Young Professionals Network for Education Works, which helps underprivileged students in the Philadelphia community.
Lauren Tracy
Business Development Manager, Dot Foods, Inc.
Lauren Tracy is a third generation Tracy family member working for Dot Foods. While Lauren started working for the family business at the age of 14, her full-time career with Dot didn’t begin until 2007. Lauren has held her current position, business development manager, since 2009. Prior to that, she served Dot’s South region as a district sales manager. Of the 47 third generation family members, Lauren was the second born. She is the Tracy Family Foundation board treasurer, and she held a seat on the Tracy Family Council for numerous years. Lauren graduated from Illinois State University in 2002 with a bachelor’s degree in communications and received her MBA from the University of Colorado Denver in 2007.
Dot Foods, Inc., carries 105,000 products from 650 food industry manufacturers, making it the largest food industry redistributor in the United States. Through Dot Transportation, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Dot Foods, the company distributes foodservice, convenience, retail and vending products to distributors in all 50 states. Dot Foods operates nine distribution centers, which are located in Modesto, California; Vidalia, Georgia; Burley, Idaho; Mt. Sterling, Illinois; Cambridge City, Indiana; Williamsport, Maryland; Liverpool, New York; Ardmore, Oklahoma; and Dyersburg, Tennessee.
Amy Billings
Family Council and Executive Committee Member, J.E. Dunn Construction Company
Katie McCullough
Manager, Business Analytics, The Pictsweet Company
Family-owned and family-run for four generations, The Pictsweet Company was built on commitment, forged from the kind of loyalty that comes from the heart. The family and company are rooted in the town of Bells, TN. The Pictsweet Company is currently owned and managed by three generations of the Tankersley family and sells frozen vegetables through both retail and food service outlets across the United States.
Katie McCullough was born and raised in Bells, TN, and is a fourth-generation member of the Tankersley family. She graduated from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville with a bachelor’s degree in marketing and international business, and a dual master’s in business administration and business analytics. Katie is currently the manager of business analytics for The Pictsweet Company as well as secretary of the Pictsweet Family Council.
Zach Tucker
Live Production Special Project Coordinator, Maple Leaf Farms, Inc.
Lindsey Wilkins Press
Family Council Member, Mannington Mills
Lindsey Press joined Silver Lake in 2012 and is a Senior Vice President, Marketing & Investor Relations. Ms. Press assists with fundraising, marketing, and investor coverage efforts for all the Firm's strategies. Ms. Press joined Silver Lake from UBS Investment Bank, where she advised private equity firms on fundraising mandates. Prior to UBS, Ms. Press was with American Capital, Ltd., where she focused on mezzanine and private equity investments in the middle market. Ms. Press was formerly an investment banker at Goldman, Sachs & Co. and Credit Suisse, where she worked on mergers and acquisitions and financing transactions in the Global Industrials and Services Group. Ms. Press graduated from Harvard College with an A.B. in Art History and a citation in French language and was a John Harvard Scholar.
Laura Rea Dickey
Chief Executive Officer, Dickey's Barbecue Pit
Lansing Crane
Former Chairman and CEO, Crane & Co. Inc.; Chairman, Canal Insurance Company, SOG Specialty Knives & Tools and Wells Enterprises; Director, Ginsey Home Solutions
Lansing Crane retired in 2007 from Crane & Co. Inc. after 12 years as its Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. A member of Crane's Board of Directors from 1985 until 2007, He is currently Chairman of the Board of Directors of Canal Insurance Company of Greenville, South Carolina, a Director of Wells' Dairy Inc. of Le Mars, Iowa, and a Senior Advisor on mergers and acquisitions and family corporate matters to Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. Mr. Crane is also Executive-in-Residence at the Family Business Center of the Loyola School of Business in Chicago Illinois, and a member of the Business Advisory Board of the Family Firm Institute.
Mr. Crane is a sixth-generation descendant of the founder of Crane. During Mr. Crane's tenure at Crane & Co., the company moved from being a New England manufacturer of niche products to a diversified, global company while still retaining the values and culture of a unique legacy company. Mr. Crane led a professionalization of Crane's board of directors, management and family governance structures.
Trained as a lawyer, Mr. Crane practiced law in New Haven, Connecticut and taught in the Yale School of Medicine until joining Crane & Co. He and his wife, Katharine, now reside in Boulder, Colorado.
Crane was established in 1801 and has been privately owned by the Crane family since then. Crane is a world leader in the manufacture and sale of high security currency products, fine cotton stationery and high performance, nonwoven materials for filtration and insulation. Crane has supplied the U.S. Treasury with all of its currency paper requirements since 1879, and has developed banknote security features that are present in the currencies of the United States, the European Union, and many nations of the world.
With its 2001 acquisition and subsequent modernization of the banknote printing and paper facilities of the Central Bank of Sweden outside Stockholm, Sweden, Crane Currency has become a fully integrated supplier of banknotes, banknote paper and security features for governments worldwide.
In the United States, Crane's branded 100% cotton stationery has been the standard for business and social correspondence, and important social occasions, for generations.
Crane's nonwoven products are sold worldwide for fine water filtration, cleaning emissions from coal burning power plants and diesel engines, and safely insulating office panels and computer chips.
Bill Rock
President, MLR Holdings
Horst Bente
Board Member, Adi Dassler (Adidas) International Family Office
Since the sale of Adidas, the family business, Horst Bente has been a private investor in a variety of fields in Europe, the US and the Bahamas. Previously, he had held executive positions at Jacobs Suchard (Germany), Bayer/Monsanto (USA) and ISL Marketing (Switzerland). A third generation member of the Dassler famly, Horst is now embarked on the journey of preserving the legacy of his grandfather Adi Dassler, founder of Adidas, through various initiatives that include an incubator to identify and finance the next great ideas in the world of sports and related fields, the development and production of a Hollywood feature film about the life of Adi Dassler, and philanthropy that combines athletics with academics in the world's underprivileged regions. Horst holds an MBA from Golden Gate University in San Francisco and is fluent in both English and German.
Andrew D. Pitcairn
Pitcairn Family Council Chair
Andrew Pitcairn, John’s Pitcairn’s great grandson, is a 4th generation member of the Harold Pitcairn Family line and is the current Pitcairn Family Council Chair. The Pitcairn Family Council was one of the first in the nation, established in 1982 as a platform for identifying family talent, educating family members about the operating business, identifying and implementing solutions for family connectedness and interfacing directors, management and owners, among other duties. Growing up in the small suburban town of Bryn Athyn and attending the community Swedenborg faith based school gave Andrew a spiritual sense that we are all here for a greater purpose and that to live life helping others was the highest calling one could achieve.
After studying psychology at Temple University, Andrew entered the world as a small business owner and from 1999-2008 owned and operated two small businesses in the Philadelphia area. This proved to be invaluable in gathering real world experience and setting the path for the next chapter in his life.
As a Pitcairn Family member Andrew has spoken at many events, including Transitions, South Eastern Family Office Forum, Hamptons Family Office, New York State Society of Certified Public Accountants, Opal Financial, Delaware Family Business Center and the Private Asset Management Group.
In 2009 Andrew moved from a Family Council member to the Co-Chair position, and after one year he took over as Chair of the Board. In 2010 he became a committee advisory member of Pitcairn's Capital Committee, a member of the Governance Committee as well as Chair of the Nominating Committee. Recently Andrew completed a course from Cannon Financial for qualification to sit as Co-Trustee with Pitcairn Trust Company on Family Trusts. Andrew sits on the Board of Directors for Pitcairn as well as Chairman of the Board for LighTouch Medical.
Chris Herschend
Vice Chairman, Herschend Enterprises; Learning Chair, YPO-WPO Global Family Business Network
Chris Herschend is a third-generation shareholder and Vice Chairman of Missouri-based Herschend Family Entertainment Corporation, the largest family-owned themed attractions company in the US. HFE properties span 26 locations and 10 states, employing over 10,000 men & women who collectively host over 13 million guests annually at properties including Silver Dollar City in Branson, MO, Dollywood in Pigeon Forge, TN, Darien Lake in Buffalo, NY, and the world-famous Harlem Globetrotters. Chris is also the majority owner and President of Ride The Ducks International, the world's largest operator and licensor of amphibious sightseeing tours with 8 locations across the United States & Guam.
Chris has been elected by the shareholders to serve on the HFE board of directors since 1997 and has served on the audit & compensation committees of the board. Prior to joining Herschend, Chris worked for Coca-Cola, Cox Communications, and an Atlanta venture capital firm. He earned both his BA (1995) and MBA (2003) from Emory University in Atlanta.
Chris and his wife Ashley have four young children and live in Atlanta, GA. Chris' current & past community/industry service roles include the International Association of Amusement Parks & Attractions (IAAPA), the Georgia Chamber of Commerce, Young Presidents Organization (YPO), Durban Youth Missions, Atlanta Youth Academy, The Church of the Apostles (Atlanta), the Georgia Center for Opportunity, and Blue Skies Ministries.
John W. Reininger
Chief Relationship Officer, The Clemens Family Corporation
Richard Gonzmart
President, Columbia Restaurant Group
Richard Gonzmart is the fourth-generation president of the world-famous Columbia Restaurant Group, which includes six Columbia Restaurants, one Columbia Café, and two Cha Cha Coconuts, a tropical bar and grill. The Columbia Restaurant was founded in 1905 and is the oldest restaurant in Florida, and the largest Spanish restaurant in the world. He is the great-grandson of Casimiro Hernandez, Sr., the founder of the original Columbia Restaurant in Tampa's Historic Ybor City. The Columbia Group was named the MassMutual National Family Business of the Year for 2001-2002.
Gonzmart currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Inaugural Florida Entrepreneur & Family Business Advisory Board at the University of Tampa, Board of Directors for Visit Florida, Board of Directors of the Tampa Chamber of Commerce, Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Hospital Foundation Board, Secretary of the Florida Highway Patrol Advisory Council Executive Board of Directors, Hillsborough County Commission Tourist Development Council, the Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association Board of Directors, the University of South Florida Foundation, and the University of South Florida Athletic Task Force. He is also on the Advisory Committee for the Culinary Operations Academy for Hillsborough High Schools and the St. Petersburg Pier Advisory Task Force.
Richard has been married to Melanie Heiny Gonzmart since 1973. They have two daughters, Lauren Gonzmart Schellman and Andrea Gonzmart; and both work for the family business at the corporate office. He has five grandchildren: twins Isabella and Michael, Maximilian, Alexander and Amelia.
Michael Williams II
Chief Executive Officer, Cadillac Products Inc.
Michael Willaims II is the 2nd generation CEO of Cadillac Products Inc. He joined the company in 1977, and became president in 1989. Prior to joining the family business, he worked for Phillip Morris.
Jonathan Flack
Partner, US Family Business Services Leader, PwC
Mark Nash
Partner, Personal Financial Services, PwC
Charlie Adams
Private Company Services Assurance Partner, PwC
Bryant W. Seaman III
Managing Director and Head of Private Asset Advisory Services, Bessemer Trust
Mr. Seaman is a Managing Director responsible for Bessemer's Private Asset Advisory Group, which includes Family Company Advisory, Real Estate Management and Advisory, Oil & Gas Advisory and Property and Casualty Insurance. Mr. Seaman also works closely with Legacy Planning to manage the delivery of Bessemer's expertise to family businesses held in trust.
While at Bessemer, Mr. Seaman served for several years on the Board of Directors of GeoResources, Inc. (NASDAQ: "GEOI"), an independent oil and gas company, where he was Chairman of the Compensation Committee and a member of the Nominating and Governance Committee. He also serves on the Boards of several private companies owned or controlled by Bessemer's clients.
Prior to joining Bessemer in 2005, Mr. Seaman was Head of International and a member of the Management Committee at the NYSE, Head of Large Cap Telecom and Media Investment Banking at Deutsche Banc Alex. Brown and Co-head of Global Corporate Finance at CSFB. He started his career practicing corporate and securities law at Sullivan & Cromwell.
Mr. Seaman earned an A.B. degree in Political Science with Distinction from Stanford University, and J.D. and M.B.A. degrees from Columbia University, where he was a Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar. He has been a member of the New York State Bar, the NASD International Advisory Committee and the National Committee for US-China Relations.
Scott A. Winget
Senior Managing Director, Center for Wealth Impact, Ascent Private Capital Management
From the earliest years of his career, Scott has been a planner. Even at a young age, Scott was keeping a ledger to manage his own allowance money and to this day prides himself as the financial and social planner for trips and events with his friends and family.
Scott sees himself “organized and analytical” and takes great pride in helping families tackle complex financial situations with a mix of sophisticated planning and forensic sleuthing. “I find it very satisfying to take a detailed look at complex family arrangements and then to help families start to work together as a unit – setting aside old family dynamics and setting up new decision-making and wealth-transfer systems.”
Scott brings more than 20 years experience in the planning and financial-services industries to his position. Scott holds a J.D. from The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law and graduated cum laude from The Ohio State University with a B.S.B.A. degree in accounting and finance. He also has several years of previous experience as a CPA in public accounting. Scott is a frequent lecturer on wealth planning and has authored a number of white papers and articles on wealth-management topics.
Jill Shipley
Managing Director, Family Dynamics and Education, Abbot Downing
Jill Shipley is a managing director at Abbot Downing who strives to identify families’ wealth objectives and develop long range strategies critical to sustaining wealth over generations. Jill, as part of Abbot Downing’s Family Dynamics and Education Practice, helps families clarify family and individual values, enhance communication, plan for transitions, engage in shared philanthropy and prepare heirs. Overall, she is focused on the preservation and continued development of the qualitative aspects of a client family’s wealth.
Prior to joining Abbot Downing, Jill served as the Director of Family Education at GenSpring Family Offices leading the firm’s efforts to prepare family members for life with wealth. She pioneered the development of interactive educational programming and facilitated multigenerational family meetings focused on enhancing family cohesiveness, celebrating and capturing family legacy, and building family member competencies. Before GenSpring, Jill co-developed the country’s first academic major in Family Business at Stetson University and was an adjunct professor teaching family business courses.
Jill was awarded the 2014 Family Wealth Report Award for being the Rising Star in the family wealth management industry. She is a noted speaker on the topic of family wealth and has been quoted in such publications as the Wall Street Journal, Barron’s Penta, Trust & Estate Magazine and Financial Advisor Magazine. Jill is certified as a meeting facilitator as a Creative Wealth International Coach and is qualified to administer the Myers Briggs Type Indicator. She earned her bachelor’s and master’s of Business Administration degrees from Stetson University. Jill, her husband and son make their home in West Palm Beach, Florida.
Rhona E. Vogel
CEO and Founder, Vogel Consulting
Rhona Vogel is the CEO and Founder of Vogel Consulting Group. While working in public accounting, Rhona recognized an unfulfilled need in the wealth management industry. Her clients, affluent individuals and business owners, desired a depth of integrated service in tax and estate planning, as well as unbiased investment advice. As a result, she formed Vogel Consulting – an independent multi‐family office.
David Lansky, PhD
Principal consultant, Family Business Consulting Group
Barbara Dartt
Consultant, The Family Business Consulting Group
Barbara Dartt is a consultant for The Family Business Consulting Group. She assists businesses with succession strategies, long-term planning, management transitions and family governance implementation, as well as other opportunities and challenges unique to family-owned businesses. She earned the Advanced Certificate in Family Business Advising from the Family Firm Institute in 2014. Barb currently serves as a board director and is past-president of the Michigan FFA Foundation.
Lauren Benenati
Director of Family Education, GenSpring
Nancy Drozdow
Principal and Co-Founder, CFAR
Debbie Bing
President, CFAR
Debbie Bing, President, is a member of CFAR’s next generation of leaders. She heads up CFAR’s Boston office and is a member of CFAR’s board of directors. She also co-leads the firm’s Family and Owner-Led Business practice group. Debbie’s specialty is helping family businesses and philanthropies create leadership, strategic and continuity plans that bridge the interests of family, business (when an operating company is in the mix) and its owners, across generations. Debbie works with senior and next-generation family members to design governance structures and forums that engage family members, guided by shared goals for the entire family enterprise. Debbie views conflict as a useful starting point for a productive exchange about organizational priorities and performance. She helps business leaders and executive teams build collaborative approaches to their most pressing challenges, particularly when managing the multiple pressures of mission, performance, culture, competencies and competition.
She is an experienced speaker and has presented to many owner-led and family business audiences, including the Family Firm Institute, the Council on Foundations Philanthropy Conference and the International Society for the Psychoanalytic Study of Organizations (from which she won The Bridger Award in 2008 for her paper “Crowding Out the Space: The Weakness of a Strong Leader”). As a second-generation owner of CFAR, she draws on personal experience in working through the dilemmas of strategy and succession. Debbie holds a master of arts in international law and diplomacy from the Fletcher School at Tufts University.
Steven R.Walker
General Counsel, Secretary, and Director of Board Advisory Services, National Association of Corporate Directors
Steven R. Walker has led the legal affairs and Board Advisory Services of the National Association of Corporate Directors since 2009 where he currently serves as the General Counsel and Director of the Board Advisory Services. In his Board Advisory Services role, Mr. Walker provides counsel to board leaders and C-suite executives on a wide range of strategic governance matters. He is a frequent public speaker on the topic of board governance, performance, and composition and has been designated a Board Leadership and Governance Fellow by NACD. Prior to joining NACD, Mr. Walker has served as general counsel and senior executive to public and private entities ranging from private equity backed start-ups to Fortune 100 corporations in a variety of sectors, including managed healthcare, healthcare delivery, pharmaceuticals, life and health insurance, banking, securities, finance, technology, funeral and cemetery, and software. Mr. Walker has also served in the government sector as an Attorney-Advisor with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Division of Corporation Finance during the implementation of Sarbanes-Oxley. He was also a Senior Attorney with the State of Florida Division of Banking, Finance, Securities and Investor Protection. Mr. Walker is the past Co-Chair of the Securities and Governance Forum of the Association of Corporate Counsel Washington Metro Chapter. The breadth of his board service also includes the Advisory Board of ContractRoom, Orange Bowl Committee, Association of Corporate Counsel-MI Chapter, American Cancer Society-Tampa, and Friends of the Gusman Center for the Performing Arts-Miami. Mr. Walker is an alumnus of Florida State University where he earned his BS and JD degrees. He also completed post graduate studies at Oxford University and Emory University.
Doug Baumoel
Founder, ContinuityFBC
Doug Baumoel brings an extensive background in family business operations and executive management to his work with clients. He served as a second-generation executive in his own family’s business and has held key executive positions in other family and non-family businesses. He started businesses in both the US and Europe, and lived overseas for six years while founding and managing the European offices of his family’s business. He has applied more than 20 years of business experience in developing The Conflict Equation, a process for analyzing key variables of family business conflict.
Doug’s expertise is in helping family businesses manage the inherent, and often extraordinary, conflicts of working or owning together, as well as to develop reliable succession plans and effective governance.
Doug contributed the chapter on managing family business conflict to the legal reference, ‘Alternative Dispute Resolution Practice Guide’, published by Thomson West. He is also the author of ‘The Stakeholder Map’, a core tool used by many family business consultants and educators to identify the roles, motivations and concerns of each stakeholder of the family enterprise. He has also had several articles published in Family Business Magazine.
Doug earned his MBA from the Wharton School and a BS in Engineering from Cornell University. He is a dual certificate holder in both Family Business Advising and Family Wealth Advising from the Family Firm Institute and received his certificate in Civil Mediation from MCLE. He is a past president of the New England chapter of the Family Firm Institute and has been awarded status as an FFI Fellow for his commitment and contribution to the field of family business advising. Doug was awarded Fellows status with the National Association of Corporate Directors and has completed the NACD Director Professionalism program. Doug is also adjunct Professor of Family Business for the Endicott College MBA program.
Anna Nichols
Director of Communications, Altair Advisers LLC
Anna has more than 12 years’ experience of marketing, research and educational programming in the family wealth industry. Prior to joining Altair Advisers, she was the Managing Director for Content at Family Office Exchange (FOX), a membership organization for ultra-high net worth families and their advisors. Anna has authored multiple studies, articles and whitepapers and is a well-known writer and speaker on a wide range of generational wealth issues. Her work has been published in the Journal of Trusts and Estates, Private Wealth Management, Family Business, and SRR magazines among other publications. In addition she has presented at numerous wealth management industry conferences, including the Schwab IMPACT Conference, the Family Firm Institute (FFI) International Conference, the Southeastern Family Office Forum and the Family Business Magazine Transitions Conference.
Previous to her work at FOX, Anna held management positions with the New York City Bar Association, and the YWCA of New York City. Anna came to Chicago as a consultant for the real property probate and trust section of the American Bar Association.
Anna received a bachelor’s degree from Guilford College and an MBA from Fordham University. She lives in Evanston, IL with her husband and two children.
Mark Haranzo
Partner, Withers Bergman LLP
Mark Haranzo's practice at Withers Bergman is focused on domestic and international private client matters for affluent individuals and their families. He has more than twenty years experience in all aspects of estate and gift planning for individuals and families, many with complex multi-generational or multi-jurisdictional issues. He regularly advises corporate and individual fiduciaries and beneficiaries on all aspects of trust and estate administration. He also represents clients in connection with disputes including Will and Trust contests, fiduciary appointments and contested accountings.
A former estate tax attorney with the Internal Revenue Service, Manhattan District, Mark has extensive experience handling tax audits of complex estates and substantial gifts. He also counsels charitable organizations and advises individuals on philanthropic matters.
Clyde Tinnen
Partner, Withers Bergman LLP
Clyde Tinnen is a partner with Withers Bergman LLP. His practice focuses on debt and equity financing transactions and mergers and acquisitions. His experience includes representing public and private corporations, from startups to Fortune 100 companies, across industries. He also advises clients on general corporate governance and '34 Act disclosure matters. Prior to working as a lawyer, Clyde was a senior financial analyst for several high-profile companies. He has published extensively on legal issues. Clyde enjoys basketball, running and coaching youth sports for his three sons.
F. Douglas Raymond III
Partner, Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP
Doug Raymond has been a corporate lawyer for 25 years and has been consistently singled out as among the top lawyers in his field by Chambers USA, "Best Lawyers in America" and the Legal 500. He has been described as "an excellent advisor who stands out for his practical and solution-oriented advice" and praised for his "excellent business sense and problem-solving abilities." He has also been endorsed by Practical Law Company. Doug was formerly a Managing Partner of the firm and served as the chairman of its Corporate and Securities Practice Group for over 10 years, stepping down in 2010 to return to the full-time practice of law.
Much of Doug's work is transactionally focused - on mergers and acquisitions, securities offerings and joint ventures - and is driven by his relationships with his clients. Doug focuses on understanding his clients' businesses and industries, their objectives and how they want to achieve them, and he is dedicated to helping his clients accomplish their goals, effectively and efficiently.
Doug also works extensively on matters of corporate governance for both public and private companies, and advises boards of directors and special board committees across a range of challenges from conflicts of interest and changes in control, to corporate investigations and risk management assessment.
Following college, Doug worked as a commercial lender. After receiving his J.D. from the University of Pennsylvania Law School magna cum laude, Doug clerked for Judge Walter K. Stapleton on the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. Doug graduated from Harvard College with a degree in classics and is a member of the boards of directors of the Atwater Kent Museum and National Community Capital Advisors.
J. Richard Joyner
President and CEO, Tolleson Wealth Management
Jeff Strese
Chief talent and Learning Officer, Tolleson Wealth Management
Oscar Cazares
Presidente, Industrias Cazel
Después de una brillante carrera profesional primero en Digital y luego en Pepsico, en donde durante casi 10 años fungió como Presidente en México, decide retirarse y emprender una carrera como emprendedor, hoy funge como presidente de Industrias Cazel y es miembro de varios Consejos de Administración de empresas familiares tanto mexicanas como extranjeras.
David Guin
Partner, Withers Bergman LLP
David Guin leads the commercial practice group of Withers Bergman in the US. He focuses on securities law matters and has significant experience representing clients with regard to matters governed by the Securities Act, the Securities Exchange Act, the Investment Company Act, the Investment Advisors Act and the Commodity Exchange Act as well as the rules of various self-regulatory organizations and stock and commodity exchanges.
He devotes a significant amount of time to advising high net worth domestic and international individuals, families, family offices and their advisors about their obligations under U.S. securities laws, including the acquisition and disposition of public and private securities, beneficial ownership reporting obligations and the applicability of the U.S. Investment Advisers Act and U.S. Investment Company Act to their investment activities.
Austin Herschend
Shareholder, Herschend Family Entertainment
Austin Herschend is a proud family member and part owner of Herschend Family Entertainment. Herschend Family Entertainment, the largest family-owned themed attractions corporation, creates, develops and operates entertainment, tourism and hospitality properties that currently span 26 locations in ten states. Austin currently serves as the Family Council Chair of the Herschend family system. He is also a General Partner of his family’s investment company, Covenant Capital. He has been engaged in his family’s enterprise as a board observer for Herschend Family Entertainment for the last three years. Austin is the CEO and co-owner of Big Whiskey Franchising, which owns five corporate restaurants in Missouri and has two franchisees in Bentonville, Arkansas and Kansas City, Missouri. He attended the University of Missouri where he received his BS in Business Administration as well as Missouri State University where he received in Masters in Education. He is married to his wife Michelle and the two have a daughter Lillian.
Peter Hedger, Sr.
President, Magnum Venus Products
Peter Hedger is President of Magnus Venus Products. Pete has oversight and management responsibilities for operational aspects of the company. He has earned a degree in accounting and has managed accounting, sales and a branch office in Tennessee. He has been with the company full-time since 1977.
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Registration Information
Please Note: Attendance at this conference is limited to members, owners, senior executives (including non-family executives and non-family board members) or shareholders of family-owned businesses whose primary business is other than advising family-owned businesses. Senior advisers to family businesses may attend only with family members. Attendance is strictly limited to the first 75 family businesses/enterprises who register.
Past attendees of any Transitions Conference receive an additional 10% discount on their registration fees.
All registrants receive a free one year subscription to Family Business Magazine ($79 value), or a one-year extension to their current subscription. Subscriptions include free online access to Family Business Magazine's extensive online archive of articles, organized by topic. Registration fees do not include hotel or travel expenses.
Family Company Attendees
$1,850--First Attendee from your family company
$1,350--Each additional attendee (Age 30 and above)
$1,150--Each additional Next Generation attendee (age 29 or below)
For general questions on attendance or help with registration, please contact Justine Wood at (703) 850-5497. Please register all attendees from your company on the Registration Form at the same time. If you determine at a later time that you need to add registrants, we will need to process the registrations offline in order to apply the discounted registration fees. To register offline, please email registrant information (name, title, company name, mailing address, phone number and email address) to jwood@familybusinessmagazine.com. For the payment, please call Jerri Smith at 215-405-6071 to provide the credit card number or use the Credit Card Authorization Form available here.
All attendees will be verified prior to acceptance of registration. A family company's advisers may attend only if accompanied by one or more family company members. Other family company advisers may contact Mike Bachman at (215) 405-6070 for information on attending.
Registration price includes all conference materials, as well as breakfast, lunch and dinner on March 23, breakfast and lunch on March 24, and a welcome reception with buffet dinner on March 22, as well as refreshment breaks.
Registration contact:
Justine Wood
Events Director
jwood@familybusinessmagazine.com
(703) 850-5497
Cancellation policy: All conference cancellations must be made in writing and sent to Justine Wood, Transitions Events Director 13631 Maidstone Lane, Potomac, MD 20854, or emailed to jwood@familybusinessmagazine.com. Registrants who cancel more than four weeks prior to the program date are entitled to a full refund of the registration fee less an administrative fee of $150 per registrant; if canceled within four weeks, but more than 10 business days prior to the conference date, 50% of the conference registration fee will be refunded less an administrative fee of $150 per registrant; within ten business days of the conference date and no shows, no refund is possible. Family Business Magazine may cancel the program if attendance does not meet required levels; in case of cancellation or rescheduling, full refunds of registration fees will be made. Travel fares and hotel deposits cannot be reimbursed.
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Barbara Spector, who grew up in a family business, has served on the editorial staff of Family Business Magazine since 2000 and has been the magazine's editor-in-chief since 2004. She has also compiled and edited six volumes in the acclaimed Family Business Handbook Series, most recently the all-new revised edition of The Family Business Succession Handbook. Previously, she was the managing editor of Jewelers' Circular Keystone, a trade magazine for the jewelry industry, which is primarily composed of family businesses.
Caro Rock is the publisher of Family Business Magazine, which is itself owned by a family company with interests in media and information technology research. She was the founder and publisher of Main Line Life, a weekly newspaper with 15,000 readers covering the western suburban communities of Philadelphia. She grew up in a family business that manufactured and sold flour under the labels Ceresota and Heckers Flour. The Uhlmann Company, formerly Standard Milling Company, also produced Wheatena and Maypo hot cereals, Patio Chef Charcoal and Just Add Water jelly mix. Today, her brother and his son-in-law are involved in the family business, which has ventured into additional related businesses.
Peter Begalla is a family business owner, Family Business Magazine's Conference and Education Director, and Adjunct Professor with Stetson University's Family Enterprise Center. He is at the forefront of Next Generation Leadership Development, having helped hundreds of college-aged students establish credibility and marketability with their family, with their family businesses or with non-family employers. He combines years of counseling experience with over 10 years of business development and marketing experience in online education.
