On November 27th, Lisa Law addressed the Rotary Club of Nashua regarding the Law Family Council. She grew up skiing at Temple Mountain with the family ski business there (owned by her father). She is a Justice of the Peace. She is on various local boards. She is a published author, trained in FungShui and tries to lead a balanced life (even while being married to Brian - Editor’s comment, ha, ha). She is the Chair of the Law Family Council.
Lisa talked about Values Base Leadership as the foundation of their family council. Thought is that if there are regular family retreats and interactions, reaching consensus on hard decisions related to business is easier. Law Family companies encompasses 7 businesses. Involves 250 employees. Operating in NH, VT, ME. Company now has its 6th generation of leadership. It is one the oldest businesses in NH.
The Law Family Companies (all merged companies in 2018) included Law Motor Freight (1882), Heavy Duty Truck and Diesel, Law Warehouses, BSP Trans, Able Moving and Storage, Law Realty and State Street Realty. They share some IT and other administrative services to eliminate the need for 8 versions with one in each business. The Law Family Council is the governance board for the businesses.
What creates a Family Council? Shared events, communications, shared history, shared values, shared vision, formal structure. Family business involves the overlap of 3 circles of influence -Family, Business, Owners. There are multiple types of Owners – Operating, Governing, Active/passive, Proud owners. The Council is trying to instill a feeling of stewardship with the next generation.
They created a Family Mission so each person can understand the vision and culture of the Family. All should be the best version of themselves. They have agreed upon Family Values in these areas – Relationships, Growth, Generosity and Fun& Adventure. There are monthly zoom meetings to review progress where stories are shared relating to progress made. They also discuss strategies for fostering growth, mentoring the next generation, addressing conflict, provide financial literacy. Fostering generosity is a goal which focuses on community involvement.
Often, they utilize consultants to get the expertise they need for developing policy or plans.
An example of Fostering Fun and Adventure was found at the Holiday Stroll with the Law Truck and many family members involved in the parade. A brief Q &A followed. – All Laws present participated in responding to the questions asked. Jack, Brian and Lisa all provided thoughtful answers.