Ward teaches and studies succession, ownership, governance and philanthropy of family enterprises.
He is co-author of several leading books on family business, including Family Business as Paradox; Keeping the Family Business Healthy; Perpetuating the Family Business: 50 Lessons Learned from Long-Lasting Successful Families in Business; Building A Successful Family Business Board: A Guide for Leaders, Directors, and Families; When Family Businesses are Best: The Parallel Planning Process for Family Harmony and Business Success; Strategic Planning for the Family Business; Creating Effective Boards for Private Enterprises: Meeting the Challenges of Continuity and Competition; and Unconventional Wisdom: Counterintuitive Insights for Family Business Success. Ward is also co-author of Why Others? Philanthropy and Opportunity and Why Me? Wealth: Creating, Receiving and Passing It On. He also co-authored a collection of 17 booklets, "The Family Business Leadership Series," with each booklet focusing on a specific issue family businesses face (see palgrave.com or thefbcg.com).
Ward graduated from Northwestern University (B.A.) and Stanford Graduate School of Business (M.B.A. and Ph.D). Currently he serves on the boards of two companies and three nonprofit organizations.