Before embarking on the drafting of a family constitution

ily, family constitutions can be very useful and provide conflict minimisation by making the implicit explicit and setting rules. However, if families do not discuss the main issues during the development process, the whole exercise may prove to be useless.

Take, for example, a family who contacted us because a new generation of cousins was currently leading and owning the company; the family leaders wanted to invite their cousins to draft their values. The exercise was to be the 'founding act' of their generation and probably a key element of a future family constitution. Listening to the leaders, it was clear that family tensions were never talked about. So instead of focusing on the family meeting to draft the values, they agreed to talk openly and ask, "What issues should be worked on?" Using participatory methods, each person listed their ideas, which were then shared and grouped by theme. Several issues were identified: communication (typical of most families), the role of women (ditto!), governace, the next generation, etc. Values were a topic, but certainly not the most pressing: the most pressing was communication and the frustrations of the women in the family who were not treated like their brothers.

We also saw several families, of lesser extent (first and second generation) where the father pressured his sons to write a constitution. One example, he wanted models of other families' constitutions to quickly duplicate what suited them. In another example, a father suggested that each of the children draft a chapter and put it all together. Neither of these approaches worked, because they deprived the children of any authentic communication about their past experiences, conflicts in childhood and work, and dreams for the future.

When a family says, "We need a family constitution," they are ready to work on new dynamics, usually a generational shift.

A family constitution is useful when it is finalised and agreed: it formalises agreements and serves as a reference for future decisions and dilemmas. But it is also useful before it is drafted: it brings together all the family members, whether they work in the business or not. It's an opportunity for communication about a whole range of important issues. In one family we worked with recently, the constitution allowed them to work on their history, vision and values, family member employment rules, governance, liquidity plans - and it brought together family members they hadn't seen for years!

However, a family constitution does not have the capacity to miraculously solve all problems. These will only be solved thanks to the sometimes difficult discussions/meetings that the family holds. It is important to stress that these improve the family's communication skills and abilities to solve new conflicts in the future. It is a win-win situation: the principles laid down in the constitution, added to a family's enhanced communication skills, reinforce each other to deal with possible future conflicts.

This blog was originally written by Christine Blondel for KPMG