Quinlan School of Business · Fall 2026

Family Business
Management

Governance, succession, and survival skills for the enterprises that run in the family — MGMT 377, taught by Kathy McCauley.

MeetsThursdays, 4:15–6:45 PM
InstructorKathy McCauley
Contactkmccauley3@luc.edu
PrerequisiteMGMT 201
Course Overview

Why this course exists

About 80% of businesses worldwide are family owned. In the US alone, family businesses generate 54% of GDP and employ 59% of the private workforce — yet they operate under pressures a standard MBA case rarely covers: the overlap of family, ownership, and management.

Using a systems model of the family and the business, this course examines culture, conflict and negotiation, career planning, ethics, governance, and succession. Students work in groups, applying family-business and entrepreneurial concepts to consult for a case-study multi-generational family business working through succession or conflict. Guest speakers — family business owners, non-family executives, consultants — join for family dinner throughout the semester.

87%of the US economy is family-owned business
32.4Mfamily businesses in the US
$7.7Tof US GDP, 54% of the total
83.3Mjobs — 59% of the private workforce
Learning Outcomes

What you'll be able to do

Required Materials

Texts for the semester

HBR Handbook

Family Business Handbook

How to Build and Sustain a Successful, Enduring Enterprise. Paperback, 2021.

HBR Handbook

Entrepreneurship Handbook

Everything You Need to Launch and Grow Your New Business. Paperback, 2018.

Course Requirements

How the 730 points break down

Participation & EngagementAttendance (5 pts) and one engagement act — question, presenting, intro — per class (3 pts), across 15 sessions.
120 pts
Homework AssignmentsFour personalized guest-speaker questions submitted before each visit, or a company bio quiz on non-speaker weeks — 14 weeks.
112 pts
Guest Speaker Responses (or Alternate Assignment)One-page reflection due before the next class, 14 weeks — or a response to an assigned article in place of a speaker.
140 pts
Chapter Quizzes10 quizzes in Sakai on assigned chapters, 10 points each.
100 pts
ExamsTwo multiple-choice exams across the semester, 50 points each.
100 pts
Final ProjectGroup consulting paper (50 pts) and presentation (50 pts) for the case-study family business.
100 pts
Engaged Learning ProjectGroup paper (25 pts) and presentation (25 pts) delivered to the Family Business Center community.
50 pts
Total available730 pts
A 93–100%A– 90–92.9%B+ 87–89.9% B 83–86.9%B– 80–82.9%C+ 77–79.9% C 73–76.9%C– 70–72.9%D+ 67–69.9% D 60–66.9%
Course Schedule

Fifteen weeks, tentative and subject to change

FBH = Family Business Handbook · EH = Entrepreneurship Handbook

01
Part One · Cracking the Code

Decode Your Family Business Guest Speaker

  • FBH Ch. 1: Decode Your Family Business · FBH Ch. 2: The Power of Family Ownership
  • EH Ch. 2: Shaping an Opportunity
  • Syllabus review, class introductions, intro to group project
02

Choosing Your Ownership Form Guest Speaker

  • FBH Ch. 3: Design — Choose the Type of Family Ownership You Want
  • Work on group project
03
Part Two · The Five Rights of Family Owners

Structuring Governance Guest Speaker

  • FBH Ch. 4: Decide — Structure Governance to Make Great Decisions Together
  • EH Ch. 5: Writing Your Business Plan
04

Defining an Owner Strategy Guest Speaker

  • FBH Ch. 5: Value — Create an Owner Strategy to Define Your Success
05

Communication & Trust Guest Speaker

  • FBH Ch. 6: Inform — Use Effective Communication to Build Trusted Relationships
06

Planning the Transition Exam · Ch 1–6

  • FBH Ch. 7: Plan for the Transition to the Next Generation
  • EH Ch. 10: Sustaining Entrepreneurial Growth
  • Guest speaker
07
Part Three · Challenges You Will Face

Four Disruptions Guest Speaker

  • FBH Ch. 8: The Business Family — Four Disruptions You Will Face and What to Do about Them
08

Working & Employment Policy Guest Speaker

  • FBH Ch. 9: Working in a Family Business · FBH Ch. 10: Family Employment Policy
  • EH Ch. 12: Keeping the Entrepreneurial Spirit Alive
09

Conflict & What's at Risk Guest Speaker

  • FBH Ch. 12: Conflict in the Family Business · FBH Ch. 14: The Danger of Losing What You've Built
  • EH Ch. 11: Leadership for a Growing Business
10

Wealth & the Family Office Guest Speaker

  • FBH Ch. 11: How to Be Responsible with the Wealth of Your Family Business
  • FBH Ch. 13: The Family Office in a Family Business · FBH Conclusion
  • Work on group project and Engaged Learning project
11

Group Project Presentations

  • Work on Engaged Learning project
12

Engaged Learning Work Session Guest Speaker

  • Continued work on Engaged Learning project
13

Engaged Learning Work Session Guest Speaker

  • Continued work on Engaged Learning project
14

Presentation Practice Guest Speaker

  • Engaged Learning presentation practice
15

Final Exam Exam · FBH Ch 7–10, 12 & 13

  • Guest speaker
Policies

What's expected, both ways

Attendance

Punctual attendance for the full class period is expected. Students are responsible for any assignments or requirements missed during an absence. Participation credit is only excused with a doctor's note.

Make-Up Examinations

Make-up exams are discouraged and granted only for unavoidable circumstances — verified illness, intercollegiate athletics, subpoena, jury duty, military service, bereavement, or religious observance — with approval from the instructor or department chair.

Academic Integrity

Plagiarism, cheating, misrepresentation, and fabrication are prohibited in all forms. Final papers are submitted via Turnitin. Violations result minimally in a failing grade for the assignment or exam, and are reported to the department chair.

Illness & Wellness

Stay home if you're feeling ill or showing symptoms of COVID or the flu — the instructor is happy to meet via Zoom to cover missed material. Students facing food insecurity, housing instability, or mental health challenges are encouraged to contact CARE or the Wellness Center.

Class Recordings & Privacy

Live discussions may be recorded via Zoom and made available only to enrolled students, becoming unavailable once the Sakai course is unpublished. Recordings are used solely for internal class purposes during the term the course is offered.

Ask Questions

If you're confused, ask — classmates are very likely wondering the same thing. If the pace is moving too fast, let the instructor know.