Should Your Next CEO be From Outside the Family?

In her discussion with Matt Nielsen of Nielsen-Massey Vanillas International, Editor Kimberly Eddleston goes into a sensitive topic for many family firms: whether an outside leader is better equipped to steer the company into the future.

Nielsen, who is Managing Director of his family's firm in Europe, talks about why they chose an outside CEO in 2017, the process that went into it, and how the family's vision for their company's future influenced the type of individual they sought to lead it. He also talked about the many hats that he and his two siblings wear -- as primary shareholders, directors and family members -- and how outside leadership helped them have the right perspective about their roles and improved the family relationships.