Selling a life's work is never just a financial act.
When the logic of the deal meets the logic of the family, tensions arise that find no place in a purchase agreement. We address them before they jeopardise your success.
Why letting go feels so difficult.
On paper, everything adds up: the valuation is fair, the successor is competent, the contracts are ready. Yet the process stalls. You face misunderstandings, sudden cold feet, or conflicts at the dinner table that defy rational explanation.
This isn’t a bug in the system. It is the system.
Succession is the ultimate collision of two worlds. The rational logic of the transaction (price, timeline, law) clashes with the emotional logic of a life’s work (identity, fairness, belonging).
This knot cannot be cut with a legal sword. As long as the "currency of identity" isn't balanced, the system will block - often just seconds before the ink is dry.
Together, we explore
- Which hidden tensions are subconsciously shaping the succession and transition process.
- How entrepreneurial decisions and personal meanings are intricately interwoven.
- Where misunderstandings arise and why they cannot be resolved through logic alone.
- Which perspectives have, until now, lacked the space to be heard.
- How contradictions can give rise to new clarity and a more robust foundation for collaboration.
We clarify the dynamics so the deal can succeed.
M&A advisors and lawyers handle the hard facts. We secure the factors that determine success but don’t appear on any balance sheet. We act as translators between the parties:
For the Outgoing Owner:
We create space for the ambivalence of letting go, ensuring it doesn’t unconsciously act as a brake at the negotiating table.
For the Successor:
We make the unwritten laws of the organisation legible, so the fresh start doesn't fail due to cultural heritage.
For the Advisors:
We increase transaction security by integrating emotional hurdles constructively into the process rather than ignoring them.
„Succession rarely fails because of numbers or contracts. It fails because the invisible is given no room in the process.”
Dr. Katja Elbert
Not just learned, but lived.
We know this situation from more than just consulting. Our team combines experience in guiding transformation with our own personal backgrounds in entrepreneurial families. We know how heavy the responsibility weighs. We act as the neutral third party that brings calm to the system when things get emotional.
Let’s assess where your process really stands.
Dr. Katja Elbert
Gründerin und Beraterin
Frequently Asked Questions - and our honest answers
Legally, yes; emotionally, often not. A contract regulates shares, but not the act of letting go or stepping into a new role. We support the phase where the paperwork meets reality. We help ensure that unspoken expectations don't turn into conflicts that could burden the business’s future success.
We are strategy consultants with systemic expertise, not therapists. Our focus remains firmly on the company. However, in family businesses, the spheres of "family" and "firm" are inseparable. We help you sort these spheres: what belongs at the kitchen table, and what belongs in the boardroom? This creates clarity and relief for everyone involved.
This concern is natural. Yet tradition is best preserved through renewal. Tension often arises between "preserving" and "changing". We moderate this process so that the experience of the older generation is honoured, while the new generation is given the space they need to shape the future.
