About the Institute

What is the Center?

The Center serves as a venue for owners and managers to learn strategies for coping with the unique challenges of being part of a family operated business.

The Center's mission is "fostering continuity of family and closely held businesses." The Center's primary objective is helping owners and family members develop the skills and knowledge to facilitate an orderly transfer of the leadership and control of the family business to the next generation.

Studies have shown that 2 out of 3 family businesses fail to make it to the 3rd generation, and 6 out of 7 fail to make it past the 3rd generation -- primarily due to lack of succession planning.

Frequently Asked Questions

The Center offers family and closely-held business owners and members opportunities to gain knowledge that can help you successfully operate and expand your business. The Center offers practical, interactive programs, resources, and networking opportunities designed to promote future business success.

We hold monthly executive roundtable meetings where participants share their knowledge and experiences with each other, in confidence, to:

Create a vision and strategic direction that family and non-family members in their business can share and work to achieve.

Identify and resolve potential relationship conflicts between generations, family members, and non-family members.

Smooth leadership transitions and resolve conflicts about power, control, and money.

Develop reward, compensation, and motivational strategies for family and non-family employees.

Prepare that next generation to take over leadership of your growing business.

Deal with a variety of management issues confronting them.The Center also provides ample opportunity for you to meet informally and confidentially with business professionals and other family business members to discuss common problems and share solutions.

The Center conducts periodic seminars from September through May on a variety of topics, including succession planning and management issues.

One of the most valuable services offered is facilitation of "affinity" groups. The "executive dialogue/roundtable" meetings enable CEOs to meet as a group to discuss topics that are relevant to being the leader and sometimes the founder of the company. Likewise, potential successors meet as a group. Oftentimes, both groups have a combined meeting.
Another valuable benefit of membership is the opportunity to network with other members to develop "sharing opportunities" on a very personal basis. Although members may call upon each other, the Center is not a leads group.

The Center's dues are among the lowest in the country compared to more than 100 other Family Business Centers/ Institutes. For less than $100/month, all members and selected members of the top management team of the business can attend all the Center's functions. The Center also allows members of non-family, closely held businesses to join.

If you are not regularly staying on top of new ideas to run your business better, if you don't have a "mastermind group" to strategize with, and if you lack a "safe place" to grow with your peers, the Family Business Resource Center warrants your consideration.

The main barrier to membership is not cost but time. Small business owners are very busy and that is why the Center pays particular attention to its programming, including topics, content, speakers and evaluations. The Center's seminars are tailored specifically to meet the needs expressed directly by our members.

Call Stan Simkins at (518) 369-7101 or e-mail your request for a membership application: Stan@fambizdoc.com

About the Director

Stan serves as the Director of the Capital Region Family Business Resource Center in Albany and formerly served as Director of the Family Business Institute at Siena College in Loudonville, NY (near Albany). The Center serves as a venue to bring family businesses together to deal with the unique challenges facing family-owned and operated businesses. 

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