Family businesses are generally very good at articulating their purpose. Purpose is an increasingly critical factor in attracting and retaining talent; it defines what the business is doing to improve the lives of others, how its products or services benefit the community or society at large. Purpose infuses day-to-day work with greater meaning; it resolves to convert effort into something that transcends the pursuit of profit and acknowledges the interests of stakeholders.
Values are the glue that binds the family, the business and its employees. They usually reflect the founder’s philosophy and act as a guide to “the way we do business”. Sometimes they are enshrined in statements of ‘core values’ that are frequently referred to in company communications and that underpin day-to-day decision-making. “Our values go back almost 20 years and still define our business,” says Torben Østergaard-Nielsen, CEO of United Shipping and Trading Company (USTC). “We don’t employ people who cannot identify with our values.”