Experts suggested separating聽ownership from management of the family businesses to ensure long-term sustainability, with professional executives running operations under the ethical guidelines set by owners, experts said.
They also stated that strong governance frameworks would guide executive decision-making and help foster ownership when boards duly recognise and reward leadership contributions.
They were speaking at a seminar titled 鈥榃here Family Values Meet Future Vision: Strategy for Sustainable Succession鈥�, organised by the Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Rajah and Tann Asia, and AAZ Partners in the capital on Tuesday.
The speakers also underscored the importance of handing over businesses to the next generation through proper management practices.
In the keynote presentation,聽Alroy Chan and Abdul Jabbar Bin Karam, consultants from Rajah and Tann Asia, Singapore, said that聽the financial, managerial, legal, and technological support must be extended to successors to ensure sustainability.
Moreover, while expanding operations, they urged family businesses to uphold values and integrity as guiding principles.
They also said that if family businesses thrive, it would encourage greater foreign investment in the country.
They called for involving the next generation in decision-making, while at the same time ensuring separation of family matters from business through a distinct governance structure.
They recommended that succession in family businesses should be based on competence rather than inheritance alone.
Regarding the family governance, they urged establishing a family charter, a non-legal but influential mission statement, embodying family values.
Moreover, they also stated to appoint the roles for decision-making powers, to preserve family control through leadership development, and to address proper conflict resolution processes.
Mirza Salman Ispahani, managing director of MM Ispahani Ltd, said that family businesses must allow professionals to lead for the sustainable growth of business.
鈥業t needs separating ownership from day-to-day management and allowing professionals to run operations to ensure long-term sustainability,鈥� he added.
He also said that in 1948, during the Partition, their family moved to Bangladesh, and the business began in the country.
鈥極ver the years, it grew because of ideas, expectations, and professionalism across generations,鈥� he added.
He also said that one of the challenges for family businesses is the tendency of owners to interfere in daily operations.
鈥楢s an owner, if I continue to interfere in the management, it creates problems. You have to empower professionals 鈥� CEOs, managers, and teams 鈥� to make decisions. Otherwise, the business suffers,鈥� he stressed.
He also emphasised the importance of succession planning and merit-based leadership in family-owned enterprises.
鈥業t should not always be the eldest son or daughter to take over. Leadership must be based on competence and consensus. The family should decide who is best suited to lead, rather than assuming every child equal,鈥� he said.
Tapan Chowdhury, managing director of Square Pharmaceuticals Ltd,聽underscored the importance of professionalism and governance in ensuring the continuity of family businesses across generations.
Focusing on his family鈥檚 legacy and the values that shaped Square Group, he said that their family friendships and shared values and his father鈥檚 vision laid the foundation of the company, combined with trust and professionalism.
He also highlighted the cultural aspects of family-run businesses, noting how personal values and traditions often intercept with organisational practices.
鈥楩or the first generation, building trust and discipline was central issue. Over the years, we realised that professional management and proper governance structures are more necessary than family loyalty,鈥� he added.
He also said that leadership in family businesses must evolve.
鈥楧ecisions should be taken with broader organisational interest in mind, rather than only family considerations. To sustain across generations, family businesses must embrace professionalism at every level,鈥� he added.
M Saiful Islam, former president of the Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry, stressed the importance of standardised systems and digitisation to ensure smooth succession in family-owned enterprises.
He said that while many businesses have achieved remarkable success under their founders鈥� leadership, continuity depends on structured processes.
鈥業f you can standardise processes and systems, they will guide you to better results. A well-defined system ensures smooth transition across generations,鈥� he added.
He also said that the majority of managers in family businesses are engaged only in routine tasks. To sustain success, he urged businesses to embrace technology.
鈥榃e need to digitise these processes and methods so that they can guide future generations and strengthen succession planning,鈥� he added.
In the welcome remarks, MCCI president Kamran T Rahman said that for ages, family-owned businesses have been key to the economy.
For driving employment and innovation, they also preserve values, traditions, and legacies passed down through generations.
He also said that lasting family firms require solid finances and market presence, alongside forward-thinking leadership changes, values, and a revitalised vision.
Anis A Khan, MCCI director and managing partner of AAZ Partners, said that as they look ahead, succession planning must evolve beyond contingency.
鈥業n an era marked by rapid technological change, shifting demographics, and global uncertainty, the ability to pass the baton with clarity and confidence is not just a family concern 鈥� it is a business imperative,鈥� he added.
He also said that in South Asia and across much of the region, family-owned businesses form the backbone of economies.
鈥楾hey are the quiet powerhouses 鈥� driving innovation, employment, and community development,鈥� he added, saying that yet, as these businesses mature, they face a critical juncture: how to ensure continuity without stagnation, and how to embrace change without eroding identity.鈥�
Representatives from different influential business families of the country and MCCI leaders also spoke at the event.
