Van Lanschot Kempen sponsors Chair in Family Businesses and Ownership Dynamics

Van Lanschot Kempen and Nyenrode Business University signed a partnership yesterday introducing the Chair in Family Businesses and Ownership Dynamics. Van Lanschot Kempen will sponsor this Chair at Nyenrode Business University for the next five years. Prof. Dr. Marta Berent-Braun has hereby been appointed professor of Family Businesses and Ownership Dynamics.

This Chair will address important topics such as the motives, perceptions, and behavior of the owners in family businesses with multiple owners. The goal is to gain more knowledge about how this dynamic between owners materializes, how it can be further developed in a sustainable way, and how this dynamic affects the company as well as society. 

The influence of the owners is particularly in family businesses of key importance. Unfortunately, knowledge about owners in family businesses is still limited. Among other things, little is known about the dynamics within larger and diverse groups of owners, such as owners from different branches of one family, owners from multiple families, or a combination of family and non-family owners. The Chair will contribute to the academic knowledge about the role of ownership in organizations and the application of this knowledge in practice.

Added economic value

As member of the Management Board of Van Lanschot Kempen and responsible for Client Management & Origination activities, Richard Bruens elaborates on the partnership: "Entrepreneurship is in Van Lanschot Kempen's DNA. We have been a family business for a long time, and partly because of this, we understand and endorse the important added value of family businesses to the Dutch economy. We have years of experience in giving advice to directors/owners of family businesses in the various phases of the business. We are involved in the various issues of the entrepreneur on a daily basis as their financial guide."

"Van Lanschot Kempen is glad to contribute to the acquisition of more knowledge about family businesses. That is why we support Nyenrode's Chair in Family Businesses and Ownership Dynamics. This contributes to conducting thorough and independent research for new views to enable family businesses to continue to play this prominent role in the future."

In cooperation with Van Lanschot Kempen, Nyenrode will set up a research program to gain a better understanding into how this dynamic can be implemented to make companies more successful.

Shift

Marta Berent-Braun is proud with her appointment. "In my research, I have seen a shift over the past few years. Owners are the foundation of a good and high-performing business. We see this in the latest developments regarding the role owners play. This role is shifting from that of a passive investor to an involved shareholder who wants to have an impact on the direction the company is going. It is important to pay attention to the relationships between the owners themselves, as well as to the relationships they have with management and external parties."

Van Lanschot Kempen's contribution to the Chair is focused on general freely accessible knowledge development to pave the way for a systematic and scientific elaboration of the field through education and research for example. Activities include conducting a panel survey among family businesses, facilitating interactive sessions for entrepreneurs, and supervising internal training sessions for employees.

Prof. Dr. Roberto Flören is RSM Professor of Family Businesses and Business Transfers at Nyenrode and is already working closely with Berent-Braun. He is pleased with the extra support in his field of expertise: "Since 1992 Nyenrode has been conducting structured research on family businesses. I am pleased with Marta Berent-Braun’s appointment to the Van Lanschot Kempen Chair. This will have a long-term strengthening effect on Nyenrode's education and research program on family businesses."