The Business of Family - Episodes Tagged with “Singapore”

Khalid Muhmood - Using the Family Holding Company to invest in Education [The Business of Family]

Mike Boyd — Mon, 18 Jan 2021 19:00:00 +1000

Khalid Muhmood is from the UK and through the family business holding company Dragonfly Education Group, is an operational investor in education.

He has been active in the business of education since 1994 when he and his wife, Arabella Peters, co-founded Apollo English and then the British University Vietnam. Since then they have invested in a number of businesses all focused on education.

Khalid and Arabella see themselves as the founding generation of their family enterprise and intend to never sell their Dragonfly Education hold co. They’re actively involving their young children in business conversations and laying the foundation for generational wealth, legacy and impact.

Standout Quotes:

"What's your biggest headache?"
"Learning from successful family businesses; so many of them do not load up on debt" - [Khalid]
"The future of education is blended, that means you've got to incorporate online with offline" - [Khalid]
"Sophisticated multi-generational families.. have taken generations to figure out that they need to separate the Governance from the Operations, and that the family needs to be excellent stewards and owners first before they can consider playing an active role in Operations" - [Mike]
"A well-run family business is difficult to beat, especially during downtimes" - [Khalid]
"Why trade anything in, when we've found purpose?" - [Khalid]
"If you’re building any business, I'd say that 'Focus' is the thing that's often lacking, especially if the entrepreneur at the beginning thinks they have to say yes to everything" - [Khalid]
"Look for the good in life... because it really helps you enjoy the journey" - [Khalid]

Key Takeaways:

If you want to be truly in control of your journey in a business, you need to be the owner, not the manager.
At the very beginning, the vision was simply to get the business to survive.
It's only when you move from surviving to thriving that you can ask, "what do you want to do?"
When asked "what is your biggest headache?" at an event, many of the entrepreneurs answered "My father".
If you're not happy with 60000 pounds per year, then any more money might not change anything.
Khalid describes the challenges of Covid-19 as a learning period for the business as a whole.
Finding a way to create balance and incorporate online with offline learning is pivotal, that will be the future for the family business.
Khalid and his wife, Arabella involve their kids as much as possible in the family business even at the early ages of 8 and 10, with some tests to determine their level of interest and perception of the business as a whole.
In the future, the key role for the kids is going to be "Good Owners"
The stewardship role is critical
One of the tips to help foster togetherness among children is that if one of them does something wrong, punish them all.
Other points to note is to never elevate one sibling above the other and to always leave them to sort out their arguments without being the judge.
Khalid shares that the preferred investments taken by DragonFly are those in which a controlling stake can be bought.
A major mistake that was made at some point was accepting an offer from Nokia when it should have been turned down because it was distracting from the core competency of the business.
Khalid shares that his source of knowledge includes mentors, peer to peer learning, and mistakes.
From Khalid to his kids: Look for the good in life because it really helps you enjoy the journey.

Episode Timeline:

[00:49] About Khalid Muhmood and the inspiration for starting the business of education
[06:01] Khalid explains some of the reasons behind the choice of Vietnam as a location for starting the business
[08:59] What was the vision at the time of starting the business
[15:03] The new vision for Dragonfly Education Group
[19:41] How did the business hold up in this period of Covid19, do you have an interest in online learning?
[24:34] Is there a vision of bringing your kids into the business if they're interested?
[31:20] Do you have any other family structures aside from stewarding Dragonfly as the main asset?
[32:53] Khalid shares some of the values, principles, and parenting approaches to raise well-rounded children amidst wealth.
[36:37] Where does this family business DNA come from?
[41:17] Where do you think you'll make the next operational or financial investment?
[43:01] One of the major mistakes made in running the business: Losing focus
[47:50] A letter from Khalid to his kids

For more episodes go to
BusinessOfFamily.net

Follow Mike on Twitter @MikeBoyd

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Special Guest: Khalid Muhmood.

Ashok Melwani - Negotiating an Exit From the 4th Generation Family Business [The Business of Family]

Mike Boyd — Mon, 11 Jan 2021 19:00:00 +1000

Ashok Melwani started his career as a teenager, working in his family’s fashion retail stores during the school holidays. In 1982, he joined the business full-time, working his way up from brand manager to an executive director of the 4th generation Indian family business. He's a seasoned entrepreneur with decades of experience in retail, food & beverage and distribution, and now an executive coach.

Ashok is a guide to the road less travelled. His story is a fascinating journey of a struggle to leave the family business and ultimately forge his own path.

Standout Quotes:

"My most disliked few words, 'You should know what to do'." - [Ashok]
"If the CEO of a business is not passionate about a business, he has no business to be the CEO" - [Ashok]
"If the family business is the only thing on your resume, it's not very worthwhile" - [Ashok]
"Crowd brings crowd to a restaurant" - [Ashok]
"Two things I and my wife can never give you as parents, we cannot give you resilience, it only comes from hardship... We cannot give you self esteem, it comes only from achieving your own goals and making a name for yourself" - [Ashok]
"Everybody has a price at which they might do something which is borderline unethical, and the price depends a lot on your socio-emotional background" - [Ashok]
"When one door closes, another door opens.. in order for that to be true, you have to do your part which is don't hang around too long when the door closes" - [Ashok]

Key Takeaways:

Ashok shares that although he wasn't particularly excited to work in the family business, the incentives and knowledge gained made it a perfect introduction to the retail business.
If the family business is the only thing on your resume, it's not very worthwhile, even if you were the MD.
Ashok discloses that following the impact of the Asian financial crisis on his transition out of the family business, he had fallen into depression for close to a year.
If you leave a family business, you don't want to have some small share in the business and start second-guessing whoever is left behind.
Although he had a clean exit, there were effects on the family dynamics at the time, as some family members didn't understand why.
Despite the many setbacks, looking back, there is no doubt that leaving the family business was the right step to take for Ashok.
I have no respect for trust fund kids.
You have a life outside and beyond the business, a lot of entrepreneurs are consumed by their business even when they should be spending time with family.
Ashok admits that based on his experience with his family business, he was not encouraged to start another one involving his children
After interacting with younger family business executive owners, a common notable point was that they were given time to work outside the family business before coming back.
From Ashok to his kids: when one door closes, another door opens, don't wait around too long afterward.

Episode Timeline:

[00:49] Introducing "Ashok Melwani"
[01:56] Ashok narrates how he joined the family business
[02:50] What sort of products was the business offering?
[13:03] Your career with the family business, where did it reach, and what happened next?
[31:32] Ashok explains he had a clean exit from the family business.
[34:00] Would you say that leaving the family was the right decision for you?
[35:04] How is the family business going today?
[36:31] Did you ever try and nurture your children to work with you and create another family business?
[38:28] Ashok's opinion on children inheriting wealth
[40:39] A notable experience that helped shape his journey.
[44:00] What advice would you give to a driven entrepreneur who aspires to be the founding generation of a multi-generational family business?
[44:57] What's your take on generational businesses?
[46:46] My next stage in life involves venturing into Leadership Coaching
[47:35] Ashok's letter to his children

For more episodes go to
BusinessOfFamily.net

Follow Mike on Twitter @MikeBoyd

If you feel it's appropriate, I'd so appreciate you taking 30 seconds to Leave a Review on iTunes, I receive a notification of each review. Thank you!

Special Guest: Ashok Melwani.

Richard Eu - Family Politics, Consolidating Power, Going Public & Taking Private [The Business of Family]

Mike Boyd — Mon, 09 Nov 2020 19:00:00 +1000

Richard Eu is a fourth-generation Eu. His grandfather was tycoon and philanthropist Eu Tong Sen who remains a legend in Singapore for the vast commercial empire he built across Southeast Asia in the early 1900’s. Tong Seng had 11 wives with whom he had 24 children, setting the stage for a complex and conflicted period of succession following his death in 1941.

One of the family's last remaining businesses, Eu Yan Sang, a network of Traditional Chinese Medicine dispensaries, was founded by Richard Eu's great-grandfather Eu Kong and the family's fifth generation are still in the business today. This is a gripping story of family politics, loss of control, re-consolidation, an IPO, and ultimately privatisation of the family firm once again.

Standout Quotes:

“My father told me when I was still studying that I would not expect to be able to work in any of the family businesses after graduation because of the family politics” – Richard Eu
“If you want to institutionalize the business, it cannot be in family hands forever” – Richard Eu
“When an institution buys into a business like ours, to a large extent they also buy into the culture that's been set up there by the family and they should be crazy just to lose it” – Richard Eu

Key Takeaways:

If you want to institutionalize the business, it cannot be in family hands forever
One of the problems that we had from the 3rd generation was that nobody called the shots, yet because they were individuals they didn't think like as institutions, they just thought about their situations
When an institution buys into a business, what they should do is preserve the culture and manage it in a modern and efficient way without trying to kill the original culture
It's not just about financial ratios or balance sheet, you have to bring in the heart
Good communication helps build trust in the family business
From Richard to his kids: when I’m dead and gone, they should look at themselves and see if they are on the path that we set off to follow as a family

Episode Timeline:

[00:48] A brief introduction to Richard Eu, who shares a detailed history of the multi-generational family business
[08:15] Richard joined the business at 42, although his father did not expect he would be able to work with any of the businesses because of the family politics involving his uncles
[16:56] About the TCM family business "Eu Yan Sang", with more emphasis on the challenges posed by politics affecting the family business.
[34:20] Despite all the challenges, the family business experienced consistent growth almost every year.
[38:20] Richard describes one of the problems that began from the 3rd generation
[42:01] How two members of the 5th generation joined the family business
[47:00] Do you have any favorite failure that set you up for success in the family business?
[50:42] A major learning point for Richard; Communication
[52:26] From Richard to his kids

*For more episodes go to *
BusinessOfFamily.net

Follow Mike on Twitter @MikeBoyd

If you feel it's appropriate, I'd so appreciate you taking 30 seconds to Leave a Review on iTunes, I receive a notification of each review. Thank you!

Special Guest: Richard Eu.