LBS Champions Sustainable Family Businesses By Building Lasting Legacy

The Lagos Business School (LBS) will explore effective strategies for preparing successors, ensuring smooth transitions, and promoting the longevity of family-owned businesses across generations.

The School will be holding its International Family Business Conference 2025 on March 27, 2025 in Lagos with the theme: ‘Building a Lasting Legacy for Family Businesses’.

LBS said that “the journey from a family business to an enduring family institution is a transformative process focused on thriving, legacy-building, and shaping a brighter future.

“This conference is a crucial platform for knowledge-sharing, fostering connections, and providing essential tools for long-term success in family businesses. It delves into key aspects such as succession planning, governance structures, financial stewardship, and technological integration within family enterprises. It aims to empower families to create lasting legacies that positively impact their businesses and the community.”

A study revealed that more than four out of five businesses in Nigeria are family-owned, indicating that 75 per cent of businesses in Nigeria are under family ownership. Successful family businesses do not just happen they are built with vision, structure, and a commitment to the next generation.

During a pre-event press conference held yesterday in Lagos, the Family Business Advisory Committee at LBS, Sarumi Rasheed stated, “LBS, through its family business initiative, is leading efforts to promote the sustainability of family businesses. Since the majority of businesses in our country are family-run, we believe that when managed effectively, they can significantly contribute to the country’s GDP growth, create employment opportunities, and help reduce poverty.”

The director of the Family Business Initiative at LBS, Dr. Okey Nwuke, emphasized the vital role that family businesses play in driving economic growth.

He highlighted that these enterprises not only contribute significantly to GDP but also create valuable employment opportunities, underscoring their importance in fostering a thriving economy.

He, however, said despite this, only about 30 per cent of family businesses will be able to live beyond their founders.

Nwuke pointed out that this conference serves as an invaluable gathering for family business leaders, family members, and successors to come together and engage in meaningful discussions about the challenges and opportunities that impact their businesses long after their founders have stepped aside.

He stated that this year’s theme focuses on maintaining stewardship to ensure that the family business can thrive long after its founders, mentioning that the theme is about preparing the next generation for stewardship and building a lasting legacy for the family business.

The keynote speaker at the conference, the co-founder of TenGen Family Office,  Aig-Imoukhuede, will join other business leaders to discuss the theme.

Some of the other speakers, moderators and panellists at the event will include the vice chancellor of Pan-Atlantic University, Nigeria, Prof. Enase Okonedo, dean of Lagos Business School, Prof Olayinka David-West; partner, Private Wealth Sevices, PwC, Esiri Agbeyi; founder/CEO, Coscharis Motors, Dr. Cosmas Maduka, among others.