Company

An international group of companies producing high pressure (cryogenic) vessels for the oil and gas industry. The group owns production sites in The Netherlands, Bangkok and Dubai and has a yearly turnover of more than 55 million euros. The group is a family owned company (second generation) led by two brothers who have eight children, who can all potentially play a role in the succession.

Situation

The two entrepreneurs have started initiatives for leadership succession and wanted a strategic action plan to grow the company, to better document knowledge and processes for transparency to the “next generation” and to build an organisation structure enabling and activating the children to think about a future position within the family-owned company. Gwynt was asked to work out the strategy, because of our experience with strategy and succession within family owned companies and because of our no-nonsense approach fitting with the mentality of the brothers. The high-tech knowledge was mainly within the brains and heads of the two brothers and we were asked to transform “spaghetti into lasagne” by making knowledge and experience more accessible for the “next gen”, making it possible to better estimate whether they want to join the company and what role they want to take.

Approach

We started with an operational scan to define (growth) potential within the portfolio of activities of the company and judge and give a second opinion on efficiency and effectivity of the operation. Growth options and risks have been investigated for the “next gen”. An organisation analysis and design were executed, delegating responsibilities from the brothers to the leadership team and clarifying responsibilities and jobs including working out development paths for the “next gen”.

Results

A clear picture and plan were made to grow the company including what operational improvements are needed to make this possible. An explicit definition of Family DNA was formulated how entrepreneurship is being done within the company. The organisation structure has been reviewed, whereby the leadership team has been strengthened with external managers during a transition period towards the “next gen” with clear divisions of tasks. A strategic transition roadmap was developed and validated , with a full buy-in and sense-of-urgency feeling with both the two entrepreneurs and the “next gen”.