Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/459961
www.BoatingIndustry.com 16 | Boating Industry | February 2015 ALL IN THE How marine businesses manage relationships and plan for the future a t the "A Contrarian Strategy for Preserving Wealth" session during the Marine Dealers Conference and Expo in November, Tom Deans, Ph.D., provided some potentially concerning statistics: Only 12 percent of family owned businesses successfully transition to the third generation and only 4 percent successfully transition to the fourth. In an industry with a large number of family owned and oper- ated businesses, these numbers can be a bit unnerving. What can boating businesses do to chart their course to long-term success? Many marine business owners and managers are also juggling several different family relationships within the company: spouses, parents, children, siblings and more. Dealers and manufacturers have offered their insights on man- aging these relationships and planning for the next generation to take over the business. While there are certainly a number of chal- lenges, these marine professionals agree that with open communi- cation, mutual respect, trust and immediate action, the experiences will ultimately be rewarding. Know and respect each other's strengths Trust. Communication. Honesty. These are all attributes within Having multiple generations in the business drives growth, energy and change, say Josh and John Vallely. change, say Josh and John Vallely.