How Family Businesses Should Plan for Generational Success

Family businesses drive 70% of global output but only 30% survive to a second generation absent early, flexible succession planning.

• Global scale of family businesses: Family-owned firms generate ~70% of global economic output and 60% of jobs; in the US, 32 million such businesses represent over 80% of all businesses, 60%+ of GDP and workforce, and 35% of the Fortune 500 is family-controlled.
• Survival is rare: Only 3 in 10 family businesses pass to a second generation and roughly 1 in 10 to a third; only about half have succession plans, mostly informal, and just a third put them in writing.

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