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Book

Wise Family Business

Family identity steering brand success

By Joachim Schwass and Anne-Catrin Glemser

288 pages

Hardcover

Overview

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Overview

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Wise Family Business aims to help families in business to identify new and better ways of achieving longevity, sustainability and performance. The book presents ground-breaking new insights and practical examples from a range of growing family businesses in which the owning families are visible and, in most cases, have branded the business with their family name.

This comprehensive and important study explores how family identity has the power to tie together families in business and leverage their values when developing and sharing the owner’s vision with their stakeholder communities. Developing a family business identity is key when building and managing an authentic, recognizable and trusted brand. It argues that family businesses that have successfully translated strong identities into strong brands are not only perceived as attractive employers but also add meaningful value to the business over generations.

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Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications

Hardcover

eBook

You can also buy the book on Barnes & Nobles, Book Depository, Orell Füssli and Routledge.

Publisher

Palgrave Macmillan

ISBN

9781137585998

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Article

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The anatomy of family business conflict

By Marco Mismetti Barbara Del Bosco Cristina Bettinelli and Alfredo De Massis
in Journal of Family Business Strategy June 2025, vol. 16, no. 2, 100660, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jfbs.2025.100660

Summary

Contact

Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications

Related topics

Customer Centricity

Family Business

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Are you up for the challenge of a downturn? Here’s how to ensure you are

By Merete Wedell-Wedellsborg
in I by IMD

Summary

Is your team ready for tough times? Ask these 7 critical questions to assess resilience, redefine success, and lead through uncertainty with purpose.

Contact

Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications

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Summary

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Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications

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Candles Killer: Lighting up the world at the bottom of the pyramid

By Winter Nie and Yunfei Feng
Case reference: IMD-2661 ©2025

Summary

Shenzhen Power-Solution (SPS), founded in 2009 in China as an entrepreneurial venture, disrupted traditional lighting markets in African villages with its flagship product, Candles Killer. This solar lamp, priced under $5, replaces hazardous kerosene lamps and has an optimized design (9 components, water-bottle stands). The candles killer solar lamp addresses the critical need for affordable, safe and sustainable lighting for people at the bottom of the pyramid (BOP), a huge market that multinationals struggle to reach. By achieving both low cost and differentiation, SPS created a blue ocean market. The company has made remarkable progress in its mission to provide solar lighting to underserved communities: by 2023, it illuminated over 55 million people across 7.8 million households in 66 countries. Beyond social impact, SPS achieved environmental sustainability at scale, reducing cumulative carbon emissions by 6.7 million tons, the equivalent of planting 368 million evergreen trees. Candles Killer's success led SPS to expand its product line into a solar home system for phone charging and multi-bulb lighting. SPS also introduced Solar Media, a platform with pre-loaded content (medical tips, farming methods, education) to share vital knowledge in remote regions.

Reference IMD-2661

Organization Shenzhen Power-Solution

Industry Energy;Utilities, Electricity Supply;Consumer Goods, Consumer Electronics

Available Languages English

Contact

Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications

Related topics

Sustainability

Customer Centricity

Innovation

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By Paul Strebel Angeliki Papasava and Patrick Reinmoeller
in I by IMD Brain Circuits 1 May 2025

Summary

Contact

Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications

Related topics

Strategy

Stakeholder Management

Browse all topics

Successione e trasformazione, la lezione di Francesco

By Alfredo De Massis
in Il Sole 24 ore 30 April 2025

Summary

Contact

Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications

Related topics

Family Business

Organizational Change

Browse all topics

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By Ralf W. Seifert and Katrin Siebenbürger Hacki
in I by IMD

Summary

Leading global operations through complexity and change in 2025 means embracing AI and ML to streamline supply chains and meet rising demands.

Contact

Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications

Related topics

Artificial Intelligence

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By Jerry Davis
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Summary

Contact

Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications

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in I by IMD

Summary

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Contact

Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications

Related topics

Leadership

Resilience

Strategy

Browse all topics