Family business owners have several priorities

While maximizing shareholder value is important in a family business, it's never the only thing, and often not even the most important thing. Other considerations, some of which can't necessarily be quantified, are always present in a business family's decision-making process. These could include the effect of the decision on employees, suppliers, customers and the community at large. Such priorities are a major factor in determining the solution to the family's capital needs.

Financial planning for a generational transfer can be particularly challenging, as risk appetites vary across generations and among different family members. The current generation is often looking to sunset out of their careers and is most concerned with consistent payments that they can count on, while the successor generation might be interested in taking the business to the next level, which requires reinvesting profits back into the company and sometimes an additional infusion of cash.