Prof. Dr. Maarten B.T. de Groot is Endowed Professor of Resilient Family Business and Enterprise Families at the School of Business and Economics of Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. He serves as Director of the VU Center for Enterprise Family Research (CEFR) and leads executive education programs focused on responsible ownership in entrepreneurial families. His research examines family businesses, enterprise families, family governance, social capital, identity, philanthropy, and long-term wealth preservation. In addition to his academic work, he is an internationally recognized advisor to business families and family offices.
Dr. Kajsa Haag is Associate Professor of Business Administration and Associate Dean of Faculty at Jönköping International Business School, Jönköping University. Affiliated with the Centre for Family Entrepreneurship and Ownership (CeFEO), her research focuses on family business succession, ownership dynamics, enterprise foundations, strategic renewal, and purpose-driven organizations. Her doctoral work, Rethinking Family Business Succession, explores succession as an ongoing practice embedded in the everyday lives of business families. She is actively engaged in executive education and collaborative research with family firms and their advisors.
Prof. Dr. Daniel Pittino is Professor of Business Administration with a specialization in Strategy and Entrepreneurship at Jönköping International Business School. He is a leading scholar in family business research and serves on the leadership of several research initiatives, including the Centre for Family Entrepreneurship and Ownership (CeFEO). His research focuses on strategic leadership, organizational behavior, governance, innovation, entrepreneurship, and family firms. His work has been widely published in top international journals and has significantly advanced understanding of how family ownership influences innovation, governance, and long-term performance.
Prof. Dr. habil. Jan-Philipp Ahrens is Head of the Interdisciplinary Research Group Family Firms at the University of Mannheim and an internationally recognized researcher in family business studies. His research spans family firm succession, leadership, entrepreneurship, innovation, sustainability, diversity, and international management. Having held visiting and interim professorships at institutions including Stanford University, the University of Passau, and the University of Duisburg-Essen, he is regarded as one of Germany's leading scholars in the field of family business. His work explores how family firms navigate leadership transitions, strategic renewal, and long-term value creation across generations.