Family Businesses
Through education and research, in interaction with practice, the chair contributes to the understanding of enterprise families, the greatest force behind family businesses. Family businesses are responsible for a significant proportion of economic growth and employment worldwide. In addition, they are important sources of technological innovation, creative entrepreneurship, and the funding of start-ups. The families behind these companies are also a significant source of philanthropic capital. Maarten de Groot: “It is surprising, from an academic perspective, that relatively little is known about enterprise families, even though they have such a major impact on our society. Research has primarily focused on the family business itself, whereas the family, functioning as responsible shared owner, is what distinguishes family businesses from other businesses.”
Enterprise Family Chair
The chair was established at VU Amsterdam in collaboration with Wealth Management Partners (WMP). WMP is an independent wealth manager with a focus on enterprise families who strive for controlled growth and securing a financially secure future for the family and future generations. The WMP services focus on public and private investments. Environmental, Social & Governance (ESG) criteria play an important role when selecting these investments. Albert van Dedem, chairman of the board and scion of an enterprise family: “We see that shared responsible ownership by the rising generations within enterprise families is one of the biggest challenges for our clients. As a signatory to the UN Global Compact Principles, sustainability is a guiding principle for us. The thinking power and experience of the new professor in these areas are an important contribution to an increasing social demand to share insights and knowledge in this area. With the new chair, we aim to strengthen our relationship of trust with our clients.”
Extensive Expertise
Historically, VU Amsterdam and the School of Business and Economics (SBE) have not focused specifically on family businesses and their impact on society and the economy. This Chair addresses this gap through research, education, and valorization in practice. Many enterprising families aim to sustain their family business across multiple generations. To do so, they must navigate challenges and adapt to a constantly changing environment filled with uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity. De Groot brings extensive expertise, insights, and experience in this area, says SBE dean Arjen van Witteloostuijn: “Recent polls have shown that approximately 15–20% of our students have a family business background. The themes that Maarten de Groot deals within his teaching and research, such as family governance, family social capital, wealth preservation and enterprise family identity, are also of great relevance to them. We are pleased with this chair and look forward to our collaboration with this professor.”
Maarten de Groot completed his PhD at VU Amsterdam in 2021 in the field of management and organization with his dissertation "Cracking the Code on Wealth Preservation: It is Not About Money". He brings a diverse background as an entrepreneur, wealth manager, advisor to enterprise families, board member and philanthropist. He is the founder and director of the VU Center for Enterprise Family Research (CEFR) and serves as the programme director of the Responsible Ownership for Enterprise Families (ROEF) executive education programme at VU. His research has been published in top academic journals. Additionally, Maarten de Groot has conducted numerous workshops, both domestically and internationally, for leadership teams of family businesses, (financial) institutions and (philanthropic) organizations such as UNICEF, JDRF, and Human Rights Watch. Currently, he holds fiduciary board member roles and advises several enterprise families, their businesses, and charitable organizations.