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Research Spotlight
What's Received May Not Be What You Hope To Pass On: Family Business Legacy Past, Present, and Future
What do you want your legacy to be?
This question guided an interactive session at re:connect 2025, where more than 70 family enterprise members explored the legacies they’ve inherited and the ones they hope to pass on. Hosted by the John L. Ward Center for Family Enterprises and co-sponsored by PwC and Egon Zehnder, the session revealed powerful insights into how families define, preserve, and reshape their shared purpose over time.
The resulting white paper, What’s Received May Not Be What You Hope to Pass On: Family Business Legacy Past, Present, and Future, analyzes participant reflections and identifies key patterns in how families interpret and transmit legacy.
Where it all began: The John L. Ward Papers 1984-2017
As a pioneer in the academic study of family enterprises at the Kellogg Center for Family Enterprises, Professor John L. Ward's scholarly papers represent a comprehensive body of work that provides rich insights into this uniquely complex segment of the global economy. The collection is contained in 37 boxes and spans the years 1976-2017 and are available at the Northwestern University archives.
Storytelling for Family Business Success
Kellogg Alumni Esther Choy, ‘09 founded Leadership Story Lab and partnered with The John L. Ward Center for The Family IN Business podcast. Leaders of well-known family-owned businesses share how they navigate succession, market challenges, and launch new ventures, not just as “family businesses” but as families who are in business—determined to stick together.
