Cary Matthews, Adam Marshall, and Jonathan Bill on Guiding Family Businesses (Family Business Radio, Episode 68)
On this episode of Family Business Radio, host Anthony Chen sits down with three leaders who specialize in helping family businesses grow, plan, and prepare for the future. Cary Matthews of Opal Partners Group draws on his Fortune 50 and small business background to help companies clarify their identity, strategy, and culture. Adam Marshall of Lorium Law explains how his firm combines technical excellence with a human approach to risk management, transactions, and succession planning. Jonathan Bill of SBS Accounting and Advisors shares how his firm frees entrepreneurs from back-office burdens, delivering accurate books, timely financials, and proactive guidance. Together, they show how strategy, law, and financial discipline intersect to build strong family business legacies.
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
- Cary Matthews emphasizes clarity on identity and culture as the foundation of strategy.
- Adam Marshall shifted from “big law” to client-centered legal practice to focus on relationships and assisting clients in making informed choices.
- Jonathan Bill sees accurate, timely financials as essential for growth, lending, and exit planning.
- Strategic planning, legal foresight, and sound bookkeeping intersect in family business success.
- Host Anthony Chen emphasizes that beyond dollars and cents, family businesses need clarity of purpose and must tie financial planning to personal meaning and legacy.
Topics Discussed in this Episode
00:00 Introduction to Family Business Radio
00:47 Cary Matthews’ Journey from COO to Business Strategist
02:14 The Importance of Organizational Structure
04:05 Common Challenges in Small Businesses
08:36 The Role of Strategy in Business Growth
12:01 Introducing Adam Marshall and His Legal Journey
14:52 Building Client Relationships in Law
18:50 The Importance of Risk Management and Pragmatism
25:21 The Importance of Foundational Documents
26:56 Preparing for Business Exits
28:20 Family Business Transitions
32:03 Introducing Jonathan Bill
32:10 The Origin Story of SBS Accounting
36:30 Unique Aspects of SBS Accounting
45:54 Legacy and Business Values
50:43 Anthony’s Financial Corner
Cary Matthews, Opal Partners Group
Cary Matthews is the Managing Partner of Opal Partners Group, LLC (OPG), where he helps small business owners and leadership teams get unstuck, achieve their goals, and build businesses they enjoy. As a strategy coach and fractional executive, he draws on more than two decades of experience leading operational improvement and growth in small businesses.
Before founding OPG, Cary served as COO and EVP of Operations for several Atlanta-area companies, overseeing project management, support services, accounting, HR, engineering, and logistics. His leadership produced measurable results, including reducing invoicing time by 80%, boosting gross profit by 10% while managing a 30% increase in sales, and cutting training development costs by 30%. Earlier in his career, Cary worked for Fortune 100 companies and a start-up, experiences that built the foundation for his passion and expertise in small business leadership.
Cary holds a Bachelor of Electrical Engineering and an MBA from Auburn University.
Adam Marshall, Lorium Law
Adam Marshall focuses his practice on matters dealing with corporations, with an emphasis on corporate restructuring, bankruptcy, and distressed M&A. Adam has represented debtors, creditors, corporations, lenders, funds, and buyers and sellers of assets in numerous industries, including retail, food service, real estate, healthcare, automotive, energy, and financial services.
Further, Adam counsels business owners/C-level executives on general corporate matters, including structuring, financing, operational needs, and liquidity events/strategies. Adam began his career as an attorney with several national and international law firms, including White & Case and Greenberg Traurig, working in the restructuring and distressed M&A practice areas.
He has practiced law since 1999 and lived in Florida for 21 years, until recently relocating to the Atlanta area with his wife Stefanie and two sons, Joshua (Duke ’23) and Alexander (University of Michigan LSA Honors ‘26).
Jonathan Bill, SBS Accounting
Jonathan Bill owns SBS Accounting & Advisors. Jonathan grew up in a small business and seeing his dad struggle to start a new business is what gave him his heart to help entrepreneurs. As a result, Jonathan started his company in 2006 with a passion to free and empower small businesses—”free” by taking their back-office responsibilities off their plate and “empower” by providing them with the key metrics and coaching in order to meet their goals. Since 2006, Jonathan and his companies have had the privilege of bringing this transformation to hundreds of organizations.
Outside of work, Jonathan enjoys spending time with his family and ministering in his church in the area of music.
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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