In last week’s blog article I presented a situation in which a daughter, now CEO of the family business, wanted her father to take on a different role in the business. Her father was content to be managing some of the business operations. His daughter wished him to assume the role of the firm’s ‘ambassador.’ With his industry knowledge and contacts she envisioned him spreading goodwill, identifying potential opportunities and mentoring next-generation family members.

A reader of this article took exception to the daughter’s attitude. The reader wrote that the daughter should not object to her father pursuing his own interests, within reason. That she should not be the judge of how her father can be most beneficial. That she should be honoring her father as founder of the business. That she should have respect and faith that her father knows what he is most comfortable doing and where he might bring the most value to the firm. My reader added the opinion that the daughter’s thinking was potentially based more on her own goals than on her father’s interests.

I’m grateful to my reader for the thoughtful and useful feedback. It highlights how many different viewpoints exist in situations like this and many strong emotions as well.

We, as professional family-business consultants, recognize various roles that elder family-business leaders can move into as they age and next-generation family members take over the business, or are ready to. There is the role of ‘ambassador,’ described in the first paragraph. There are ‘monarchs’ who hang onto authority and control until they die. There are ‘generals’ who leave but don’t give up their authority and may even return to ‘save’ the business.

As it happens, in the family business described above we see the father assuming yet another common role, that of ‘inventor’ He has returned to developing the firm’s core business. He is in a position, now with his expanded knowledge and experience, to add value to the firm with innovative management ideas, production methods and products.

The ‘ambassador’ and the ‘inventor’ are two of the more valuable roles a family-business elder can embrace as they pass leadership onto the next generation.