Sharing our thinking

CMG regularly updates our thinking on research, trends, and stories about business families and how best to support them.

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The Yurman family: Business in the service of art

Family businesses start by creating something that nurtures culture, as the Yurman family has done. They then wrap the economics around that creation, allowing the art — and the values behind it — to endure across generations. CMG Partner Marty McConnell shares: "Business families that thrive across generations share a common trait: they know their 'why'..."

Stiller & Meara: The power of storytelling in family businesses

While many family enterprises operate behind closed doors, the Stillers built their brand on stage and screen. Their personal history wasn’t hidden — it was refined, shaped, and retold in ways that created trust with their audience. Over time, that trust became their brand. This is the quiet power of storytelling in a family enterprise...

Giving that lasts: How business families strengthen Canadian communities

Across Canada, business families don't just build companies — they build communities. They give generously to causes close to their hearts, and their philanthropy is multifaceted. But more than its breadth, what defines their giving is its character — sustained, personal, and woven into the family itself. And the numbers prove it...

What we're reading: Creativity Inc.

Creativity Inc. is really about one simple core idea: that great companies are built less on brilliant ideas and more on environments where people can improve imperfect ideas together through the Braintrust model. This model works because the best leaders aren’t the ones with all the answers — they’re the ones who create environments where the truth surfaces quickly...

The Castel family: Transition or transaction?

The growing rift between the Castel family and the founder-established governance structures highlights a premise that CMG sometimes sees in the family dynamics: A support system is worth investing in, and a family’s skills, capabilities, and communication need to evolve to adapt and support the family’s future...

More than a name: Why family businesses need to build intentional identities

Sharing a last name doesn’t automatically create shared purpose. In advising Canadian business families, CMG Principal, Quillan Quarrington, finds that owning a business alongside your family requires additional effort to find trust and alignment...

What we’re reading: Another Way

At a time when scale and speed are often seen as primary measures of success, Another Way by Dave Whorton and Bo Burlingham offers a thoughtful alternative — one that resonates with business owners, family enterprise leaders, and their advisors. Within the pages of Another Way, leaders of family businesses will find themselves in good company and be reminded to take pride in what only a few can do...

Fidelity in the family

Creaghan McConnell Gould recently came across an incredible interview with the ever-entertaining David Rubenstein and the seldom-interviewed Abigail Johnson, the third-generation Chairwoman and CEO behind Fidelity Investments. Fidelity has been privately held and family-controlled since Johnson's grandfather, Edward C. Johnson II, founded the business in 1946...

The house of Armani: A legacy designed to last

Less than one week after the launch of the 50th anniversary celebration for his revolutionary fashion house, Giorgio Armani passed away on September 24, 2025. He was 91. Known as “Re Giorgio” (“King Giorgio”) for his reign in the fashion industry, the illustrious Italian designer was the sole owner of his iconic company...

The Milstein family: Stepping back to move forward

Like many family businesses, the Milstein family behind Burlington Coat Factory built their business the old-fashioned way — through hard work, grit, and passion. Creaghan McConnell Gould celebrates and commends these families for their dedication to their family business and the communities they serve...

Beyond the field: Jerry Jones and his family as a legacy

Even if Sundays have never been for football in your household, you’ve heard of the Dallas Cowboys, the richest franchise in the NFL according to Forbes and, arguably, the most distinct NFL brand to exist. For Creaghan McConnell Gould, the Jones family exemplifies what it means to be a successful business family...

The Murdoch family: Lost in a trust

The tides turn swiftly in family business. In our recent article about the Murdoch family, we explored the tumultuous court proceedings that came to a halt due to legal gridlock. Today, Lachlan maintains exclusive control of the company while his siblings walk away as beneficiaries. Although the family’s final solution appears to have resulted in a “win-win” scenario, we can’t help but think this would have been better handled as a private family matter — instead of shared for all the world to see in the international press...