Making the next leap in your own family business is wonderfully within reach. The progress stops being a straightforward affair once you realise that for longevity’s sake, you will eventually need to pass on your entrepreneurial gene to your family members. Your relatives may be your first choice in terms of their familiarity with the business, but then again, their level of concern towards what has become an extension of yourself might not match yours as an owner.

More than 75 per cent of Maltese businesses had to go through this phase with little relative local literature in place. Family businesses had to rely on advice from their peers or mentors, which, although very valid, was purely subjective.

This no longer needs to be the case. In one of its latest initiatives to bring education through literature to the forefront, APS Bank has brought together the insight and expertise of some of the top professionals in family business studies who, by also being practitioners, are cumulatively backed decades of experience in the field.

The Maltese Family Business: Getting Organised is the first locally produced book of its kind, especially because it is the first work to accurately capture a clear snapshot of the local family business scenario through the eyes of those whose careers are dependent on its prosperity.

Occupational psychologist Roberta Fenech, accountant Stephany Grech Duca, financial controller Kenneth Camilleri, and lawyers Priscilla Mifsud Parker, Nadine Sant and Jean-Philippe Chetcuti, who are among the contributors to the book, explain how they have helped family businesses thrive in a number of critical stages such as expansion, succession planning, and continuity.

Although these challenges seem to cause intrafamily friction, facing up to them most often leads to the realisation that there is indeed a solution. By adopting a system of professional management, family businesses can develop a tailored guide to navigating through their complexities more efficiently. Having already seen thousands of local companies go through a similar predicament, the contributors share their coping strategies for families.

Mario Duca is the editor of this collection of essays. In his capacity as president of the Malta Association of Family Enterprises, consultant at 2M Management Consultants Limited, and former employee of a number of Maltese family business, Duca has over 20 years of experience in family business management.

Apply for a free copy of The Maltese Family Business: Getting Organised by visiting www.apsbank.com.mt.