Managing Risk, Maximizing Opportunity

Do family enterprises understand their risk capacity?

In a well-run enterprise, whether family leaders are risk-averse or risk takers, risk needs to be collectively managed.
We will explore whether enterprising families should take on more risk and ask:

1. As we identify family enterprise risks, how should we prioritize them?
2. How do we assess our appetite for risk or measure risk capacity?
3. How do we convert that knowledge into a board strategy?

Facilitator(s): Devin DeCiantis, Managing Partner, LGA

Fortifying Financials

Family Fortunes: Are there any safe harbours for investing families?

This year has been dominated by global conflict and inflation as the world tries to find a new normal amid the ongoing pandemic. We will ask:

1. Where should families park their wealth?
2. What will financial resilience look like in 2023?
3. Is “stagflation” the new normal?

Introduction: Karl Moore, Associate Professor, McGill University

Facilitator(s): Carine Salvy, Executive Director, Canadian Alpine Club

What Price for Sustainability?

The Planet: Can families afford to put off sustainability?

Long term, a hostile biosphere could unleash geopolitical turmoil and slash global economic growth. Is sustainability the way forward? We will ask:

1. What is the role of private enterprise in saving the planet?
2. What tangible outcomes can we expect from progressive enterprises?
3. Governments provide regulatory frameworks. Can family businesses do more?

Facilitator(s): Ed Whittingham, Public Policy Professional, Whit & Ham

Health, Wellness and Tech: A Convergence?

Where will convergence lead?

The growing wellness industry, whose focus is to shift disease management from reactive to preventive, is worth trillions. Where do families, businesses and doctors fit it into a future shaped by software engineers? We will ask:

1. Tech is improving our health, but is it leading to sedentary lifestyles?
2. Has tech been co-opted into tools of behavioral manipulation and addiction?
3. What happens when AI systems are wrong?

Introduction: Susie Ellis, Chair and CEO, Global Wellness Institute

Facilitator(s): Kathi Irvine, Co-Founder, Watershed

Families: The Strongest or Weakest Link?

Governance: Can families find grace in disruption?

There is a body of research that paints family enterprises as solid employers and businesses whose owners take a long term view. Resilient and tight knit, they ride out disruptions, but are there better tools for confronting uncertainty? We will ask:

1. What does “good governance” look like in the family business of tomorrow?
2. What governance tools do family businesses need in an age of disruption?
3. Where do family enterprises excel as models of good governance?

Introduction: Estelle Metayer, Principal and Founder, Competia

Facilitator(s): Matt Fullbrook, Fullbrook Board Effectiveness

(Un)Limited Resources?

Are we paying enough attention to scarcity?

The gap between limited resources and (theoretically) limitless wants is widening. Natural resources are becoming the new powerful key to defining geopolitics and securing economic and strategic interests. Are family enterprise leaders paying enough attention to scarcity? We will ask:

1. Who will pay the enormous costs of transitioning to renewable energy?
2. Should we discourage investment in fossil fuels?
3. What is the cost of inaction on family enterprises slow to adapt to energy policy changes?

Introduction: Ed Whittingham, Public Policy Professional, Whit & Ham 

Facilitator(s): David C. Bentall, Founder, Next Step Advisors

How Will AI Impact Family Firms?

Artificial intelligence and beyond

In this session we will explore the phenomenon of artificial intelligence (AI) and discuss its applicability to family businesses. We will ask:

1. What exactly is artificial intelligence?
2. How do organizations leverage AI to change their way of doing business?
3. What is the relationship between “values” and AI?

Introduction: David R. Beatty, Board Chair, The David and Sharon Johnston Centre for Corporate Governance Innovation

Facilitator(s): Vern Glaser, Associate Professor, Entrepreneurship and Family Enterprise, University of Alberta

Geopolitics, Family Business and Long-Term Views

Is the west’s golden age of innovation over?

Some believe that the aggressive axis of Russia and China is the main threat to the Western-dominated international system. Is the West’s golden entrepreneurial and innovation age behind it? We will ask:

1. Can family enterprises find long term stability amid increasing geopolitical instability?
2. What would a reduced Chinese role in the Canadian economy look like?
3. Canadian companies have enjoyed decades of relatively stable geopolitics. Has time run out?

Introduction: Matthew Burrows, Co-Director, New American Engagement Initiative, Atlantic Council

Facilitator(s): Thierry Malleret, Founder and Managing Partner, Monthly Barometer

Clashing Clans

Transitioning leadership and "letting go"

The act of “letting go” involves more than one family member. The question is how to do so an elegant and unified manner. In this session, we will ask:

1. When is choosing not to lead in everyone’s interest?
2. What does “letting go” mean to all family members?
3. For whom is leadership transition more taxing: leaders or successors?

Introduction: David C. Bentall, Founder, Next Step Advisors

Facilitator(s): Tim Yeung, Peterson BC

The Transition Hike Journey

Where there is a will there is a way

Getting from the first generation to the fifth generation can be a daunting hike. Discover how the Mannix family overcame and mapped it out, every step of the way.

Introduction: Michelle Osry, Partner, Deloitte Canada

Facilitator(s): Margaret-Jean Mannix, Chair, Viridian Family Office

"Walkshops"

Reach higher, gain perspective

Hike through magnificent panoramic viewpoints with a diverse group of experts and practitioners while exploring new perspectives on today’s issues. Nature alters our perception just as an invigorating walk in a fresh setting resets our frame of mind. The aim of these workshops is twofold:

1. To arrive at a more granular understanding of the issues raised.
2. To generate ideas and solutions to both seize opportunities and mitigate risks.

Learning From the Heights

Learning opportunities with an amazing view

Get new perspectives firsthand from experts and fellow participants on issues surrounding today's shifting values and attitudes, including:

1. Author Geoff Powter in conversation with Will Gadd on the psychology of risk-taking.
2. "Staying True to Your Values" by three-time Olympian Beckie Scott, former Chair of the World Anti-Doping Agency’s Athlete Committee
3. One of North America's top alpinists, Barry Blanchard on the Banff Mountain Film Festival.
4. “The White/Whytes of Banff: An Enterprising Family” by renowned author and mountaineer, Charles "Chic" Scott.