‘A unique opportunity to connect with highly-successful brands’ – Joseph Gerada, FBO Regulator

Preparations are in full swing for this year’s EFB Summit, which will take place in Rome in October, and Malta’s family businesses are being invited to be part of the exciting programme. The annual summit, which specifically connects the owners, leaders and members of family businesses from different European countries to other like-minded individuals, is being organised by EFB – a European organisation for family businesses – in collaboration with AIDAF, which is the Italian chapter of the organisation.

“Malta’s Family Business unit is a regulatory office set up by law, and we are members of the EFB. We count around 330 registered businesses and our invitation is open to all of them. This year is an excellent opportunity for those who would like to benefit from all the opportunity that the event brings with it, with the least possible travel time and costs required,” Dr Joseph Gerada, who is the Regulator at the Family Business Office, explains..

The seminar takes place over three days between Thursday and Saturday, with attendance on the last day being optional for those who are really pressed for time. The programme is a veritable who’s who of hugely successful brands that started out as family businesses, with names like Giuseppe Lavazza (Chair of Lavazza Group), Alessandro Boglione (Executive Vice Chairman of BasicNet), Josè Rallo (CEO and co-owner of Donnafugata), the owners of illycaffè S.p.A and Enrico Marchi (Chair of Finint Banking Group) leading the discussions and the workshops among others.

“What’s notable is that, while they started out as small family businesses, today these brands are all international success stories and household names. They will be sharing their challenges, processes and methods with the participants, and the knowledge that can be gained by Malta’s small business leaders is invaluable,” Dr Gerada says.

But the benefits go beyond the scheduled events and workshops. With around 65 per cent of European countries represented at the EFB, those who are part of the Maltese delegation will be in a position to network with countless other family businesses who have been through the same experiences and challenges as they have.

“Once the delegation members are finalised, we are looking into putting the Maltese family businesses in touch with other participants immediately, so that they can hit the ground running with connections and possible meetings as soon as we arrive in Rome,” Dr Gerada elaborated, noting that with Malta and Italy being so culturally close this edition of the summit was likely to be one of the most fruitful for Maltese participants.

Moreover, the summit will also offer the opportunity to develop new business development strategies, especially for those family businesses who are interested in the potential of importing or exporting services and goods. The programme is also set to tackle topics that are particularly interesting to family-owned businesses, such as work/life balance, succession and governance structures.

“The leaders of family businesses invariably find it a struggle to detach from their working life. Many are so immersed in the day-to-day that it becomes very difficult to detach, and this can create problems especially in terms of the next generation coming into the business,” Dr Gerada explains.

He attributes this, very often, to a lack of governance structures which end up negatively affecting the longevity and the potential for growth of a business.

“We understand that family business leaders are very busy and feel they have to be present daily. But, unless we learn how to detach ourselves, it’s very difficult to have an objective view of what we are realistically going through and what we can achieve in the future.”

Dr Gerada adds that, very often, the Family Business unit sees family business leaders who are completely immersed and don’t take the time to step back. These tend to end up without a long-term strategy, which in turn inhibits growth and can lead to actual failure.

“It will also impact the new generation’s decision whether to take an active role in the business or not, especially if there are other, less stressful opportunities present,” he says. “Implementing governance structures counteracts this challenge, and this is where participation at the EFB Summit can really help small businesses. No-one is indispensable and it comes to a point where the owner is the investor rather than the employee, making room for others to oversee daily operations. This point will come across very clearly during the summit, but we will also witness what steps other leaders took to achieve it.”

The Maltese delegation will also benefit from the opportunity to visit a number of local companies within Rome and its surroundings to see the day-to-day operations of other family businesses. This is particularly useful in terms of understanding how some micro businesses scaled up to the point of becoming large scale.

“Malta’s family businesses start small, and for many this never changes. But when you see huge brands that started out small and nowadays are a massive success story, this is very inspirational and we can learn a lot from them.”

The participation fee, Dr Gerada adds, is very achievable. And, as the number of participants is currently being decided, he encourages all family businesses who are interested in taking up this opportunity to get in touch with the Family Business Office to discuss logistics and possible support.

“The EFB Summit is undoubtedly a huge opportunity to learn, grow and develop. But it’s also an excellent opportunity to take some time out of the company with the family, turning it into a hybrid working holiday,” he concludes with a smile.

The EFB Summit takes place between October 3 and 5 in Rome. If you are interested in forming part of the Maltese delegation, get in touch with the Family Business Office by sending an e-mail here or by calling on 21497970.