Succession Planning with Steve Fisher and Bryan Preston (Family Business Radio, Episode 70)
In this episode of Family Business Radio, host Anthony Chen is joined by Steve Fisher from Strategy Partners Group and Bryan Preston from Gaelic Business Solutions for a candid conversation about the real challenges that prevent family businesses from growing and transitioning successfully.
Steve shares how his journey from being an engineer to becoming a longtime CFO, which included navigating a stressful acquisition and downsizing, ultimately led him to advise business owners on strategic, operational, and financial issues. He explains why most businesses plateau because the owner becomes the bottleneck, how weak financial reporting and “shoebox” accounting quietly destroy valuation, and why a buyer is purchasing the company’s future potential, not the owner’s heroic history.
Bryan draws on his corporate background and his experience growing up in a declining mill town to explain why healthy small businesses are vital to the communities they serve. He discusses the danger of running a family business like a family instead of a business, how to free up owner time by building repeatable processes and delegating effectively, and why owners should be spending a significant portion of their week working on the business instead of just in it.
Together, Steve and Bryan present practical low-hanging fruit that family business owners can address immediately, including establishing clean books and standard operating procedures, as well as tackling difficult questions about succession, legacy, and the true requirements for successfully passing the torch.
Family Business Radio is underwritten and brought to you by Anthony Chen with Lighthouse Financial Network. The show is produced by John Ray and the North Fulton affiliate of Business RadioX®.
Key Takeaways from This Episode
- Start with the end in mind. Steve says owners should think about their exit when starting a business, as every owner will leave eventually, and the only question is how much control they will have over that transition.
- Owner dependency kills value. Both guests note that the greater the business’s reliance on the owner’s daily involvement and crisis management, the less attractive and valuable it becomes to potential buyers or future successors.
- Clean financials are nonnegotiable. Many family businesses rely on checkbook accounting or neglect their balance sheets and cash flow, making it difficult to run the company and even harder to sell it. Establishing solid, understandable financial statements is a foundational step.
- Documented processes are an asset. Written, current, and consistently followed standard operating procedures make a business more turnkey, easier to scale, and significantly more appealing to successors or acquirers who need to understand how operations function without the owner’s presence.
- Delegation is about trust and monitoring. When owners refuse to delegate responsibilities to capable team members, it often indicates a trust issue, either regarding the employee or the owner’s ability to supervise effectively. Learning to delegate tasks and then monitor the results is essential for growth.
- Family must act like a business at work. Bryan highlights that family dynamics, charitable payroll decisions, and unresolved personal issues can undermine performance and value. Buyers will not pay to support family dynamics, so these issues must be addressed well before any transition.
Topics Discussed in this Episode
03:16 Challenges in Family BusinessesSteve Fisher, Founding Partner, Strategy Partners Group
Steve Fisher is the founder of Strategy Partners Group and brings more than 30 years of leadership experience as a CFO, management consultant, and advisor to growing companies. With a background in industrial engineering from Virginia Tech and a long tenure as CFO of a national financial services firm, he helps business owners and executive teams improve financial performance, manage risk, and build companies that are prepared for growth or exit. His expertise includes financial analysis and modeling, regulatory compliance, process improvement, and building monitoring and accountability systems that support better decision-making.
Known for making complex financial topics understandable to non-financial leaders, Steve has co-developed and delivered “Finance for Everyone,” contributed as a subject matter expert to executive training programs, and spoken to groups ranging from Emory University’s continuing education programs to private business networks. Through Strategy Partners Group, he works with C-suite leaders to design and support strategic, value-enhancing initiatives across their organizations, including succession and exit strategy planning.
Bryan Preston, Owner, Gaelic Business Solutions, LLC
Bryan Preston is the owner of Gaelic Business Solutions, LLC, a consulting firm focused on small and mid-sized businesses. He brings more than 30 years of executive experience from large organizations, where he served in roles such as Vice President of People and Culture, Senior Vice President of Talent Management and Community Relations, Interim CIO, Senior Vice President of Marketing and Product Management, Managing Director of New Product Development, Vice President and Business Unit Leader, and Vice President of Operations. Bryan holds a bachelor’s degree in quantitative economics from Framingham State University. Bryan has been married to his wife, Lori, for 39 years, and together they have three grown children and five grandchildren.
Gaelic Business Solutions partners with mid-market leaders who have outgrown basic business tactics but do not fit the mold for enterprise playbooks. Using its Mid-Market Optimization Method™, the firm provides strategic advice grounded in Bryan’s cross-industry executive experience. The focus is on practical, executive-level insight tailored for operators who want results and clarity, not theoretical frameworks or unnecessary complexity that slows execution.
Anthony Chen, Host of Family Business Radio
Family Business Radio is sponsored and brought to you by Anthony Chen with Lighthouse Financial Network. Securities and advisory services are offered through OSAIC, member FINRA/SIPC. RAA is separately owned, and other entities and/or marketing names, products, or services referenced here are independent of OSAIC. The main office address is 575 Broadhollow Rd., Melville, NY 11747. You can reach Anthony at 631-465-9090, ext. 5075, or by email at anthonychen@lfnllc.com.
Anthony Chen started his career in financial services with MetLife in Buffalo, NY, in 2008. Born and raised in Elmhurst, Queens, he considers himself a full-blooded New Yorker while now enjoying his Atlanta, GA, home. Specializing in family businesses and their owners, Anthony works to protect what is most important to them. From preserving to creating wealth, Anthony partners with CPAs and attorneys to help address all of the concerns and help clients achieve their goals. By using a combination of financial products ranging from life, disability, and long-term care insurance to many investment options through Royal Alliance, Anthony looks to be the eyes and ears for his client’s financial foundation. In his spare time, Anthony is an avid long-distance runner.
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