UB Center for Entrepreneurial Leadership to launch family business initiative

By Jacqueline Molik Ghosen

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- Beginning in February 2014, family business owners can take advantage of a new initiative designed exclusively for them.

The University at Buffalo School of Management’s Center for Entrepreneurial Leadership (CEL) will launch Taking Care of Family Business, a new program focused exclusively on supporting family business ventures.

Taking Care of Family Business will provide opportunities for relational and business growth in family ventures through workshops, interactive educational programming and networking. The goal of the initiative is to cultivate a community of support for family businesses that will promote healthy interpersonal and business growth.

“Family business entrepreneurs have long played an important role in invigorating the greater Western New York economy,” said Thomas Ulbrich, assistant dean and executive director of the CEL. “But they have unique challenges and needs.”

The Family Business initiative is a response to those expressed needs and will provide families with the right balance of practical guidance and support so they can continue to grow, thrive and make smooth leadership transitions.

Ulbrich will serve as an executive-in residence along with Scott E. Friedman, internationally recognized author and family business consultant, and Amy Habib-Rittling, a family business advisor.

Membership in the CEL’s Taking Care of Family Business initiative and access to its resources is limited exclusively to family businesses and membership includes the opportunity for up to four family members to take advantage of semiannual workshops with expert speakers and quarterly networking events that will bring together the dynamic greater Western New York family business community. 

Families that would like to further explore issues affecting the family business also can participate in Growing a Healthy Family Business, the initiative’s flagship course. Developed collaboratively with family business experts of diverse disciplines, seasoned entrepreneurs and backed by the thought leadership of the UB School of Management, this 10-week course delivers practical solutions on topics relevant to family businesses while incorporating the cutting-edge principles of positive psychology.

The center has strategic plans to grow the family business initiative over the next five years to include professionally facilitated peer support groups and a next generation of family business leaders program.

To learn how your family business can become an inaugural member of this groundbreaking initiative, and for pricing information, call 716-885-5715 or send email to mgt-cel@buffalo.edu. 

Established in 1987, the CEL provides participants with individualized and interactive education in entrepreneurship. More than 1,200 CEL alumni employ more than 22,000 Western New Yorkers, and their businesses are worth more than $2 billion to the local economy. For more information, visit mgt.buffalo.edu/cel.

The UB School of Management is recognized for its emphasis on real-world learning, community and economic impact, and the global perspective of its faculty, students and alumni. The school also has been ranked by Bloomberg Businessweek, the Financial Times, Forbes and U.S. News & World Report for the quality of its programs and the return on investment it provides its graduates. For more information about the UB School of Management, visit mgt.buffalo.edu.

The University at Buffalo is a premier research-intensive public university, a flagship institution in the State University of New York system and its largest and most comprehensive campus. UB’s more than 28,000 students pursue their academic interests through more than 300 undergraduate, graduate and professional degree programs. Founded in 1846, the University at Buffalo is a member of the Association of American Universities.