Dr Barbara Murray
In 1995 I founded the Centre for Family Enterprise (CFE), which was the first resource in the UK to provide education and support facilities to families in business based on research and international scholarly activity. In 2000 Ken McCracken and I (the law firm in which Ken is a partner had helped to sponsor the CFE) founded FBS, with the aim of providing practical help for family enterprises in relation to succession and governance. We have coined the term "pracademic" to describe our work, which means:
- Intelligent, not superficial - demonstrating depths of thinking and experience
- Coherent - all our ideas and advice fit together
- Practical - our advice always connects with, and offers incisive help with the real questions, problems, tasks and issues.
- Grounded - sure that the content is right because it is based on reliable knowledge, research and experience so no waffle.
After leaving the CFE In 2002, I became Executive Director of the Family Business Network (FBN), the world association for family businesses, a post I held until 2004. My other roles have included Editor-in-Chief of Families in Business magazine; member of the Editorial Review Board of the academic journal, The Family Business Review and a stint as a Director of the Family Firm Institute (FFI), the international association of family business advisers and educators. I am also a Fellow of the International Family Enterprise Research Academy (IFEA) and a FFI Fellow in Family Business Advising.
I have an MBA and a PHD in family business succession transitions, and studied family psychology and human relations in Scotland and at Georgetown.
