Horst Finkbeiner

Creaghan McConnell Group

We help Canada's leading business families transition their capital to the next generation. The result is that their businesses and families stay intact and strong — long into the future. Our clients are entrepreneurial families who have built ultra high net worth private businesses (generally, in the $500M - $1B range). They want their companies to continue to grow in the hands of the next generation. We guide the family in designing a future ownership plan. We guide the family in designing a future ownership plan for the successful transition of the business between generations. The ideal plan is clearly communicated among all family members and advisors, funded efficiently, and implemented with confidence. Our approach delivers: 1) Greater clarity among family owners. Each owner understands the current and future plan for ownership and the family's vision for the future. They also have the right explanation and education to engage in the plan. 2) A family office capability and mindset. We believe the secret to successful continuity lies at the intersection of the family and the business. A family office enables the family to build a discipline in preserving both its financial capital (the monetary requirements to grow the business) and its ‘continuity' capital (the wisdom, knowledge and experience necessary to pass between generations). 3) Increased confidence in the funding plan. The right funding of the ownership plan empowers family-owned companies to confidently face generational liquidity events and buyouts of family members, as well as dealing with dividends and other financial requirements. 4) A quantum leap in coordination through independent advice. Building in independent perspectives among family owners and its advisors improves decision-making in the family. We've learned that a team approach to supporting the family delivers far greater results than each advisor working independently.