The Growth Guide | September 2026: 'There’s got to be a better way’

Antonio’s Take

Fighting to hold onto a family business is a story I understand at my core. Every legacy company hits a moment where outside money looks easier than the family fight, and somebody has to decide if the name over the door still matters. That decision is never just financial. It's about whether the next generation gets a legacy or a payout. I've watched family businesses lose their best young people because leadership never let them feel ownership before the ownership was official. If Jeanie Buss is fighting to keep control, the real fight underneath is making sure the next generation is ready and wanted at the table. Start that work now, not when the offer letter shows up.

Antonio’s Take

The first impression here is that being a family business in a global spotlight is just awkward, a PR liability you manage and minimize. I'd argue the opposite. The awkwardness is the point. It's proof there's still a real family behind the name, with real opinions and real stakes, and that is exactly what customers and employees are hungry for right now. Polished corporate messaging is everywhere and nobody trusts it. A family business that occasionally says something unguarded is showing you it's still run by humans, not a committee. If you're leading a legacy company, stop apologizing for the personality. Sure you need to manage it, but don't sand it down until it disappears. That personal touch is your advantage, not your liability.

Antonio’s Take

This is succession done the right way, and it's worth paying attention to. The Dangote daughters aren't waiting for a switch to flip. They're already in the room, already shaping what cement, refining, and power look like for the next fifty years. That's the everlasting solution mindset I write about, building for permanence, not just the next quarter. Too many family businesses keep the next generation on the sidelines until the founder is ready to walk away, and by then it's too late to hand off anything but a title. Legacy isn't preserved by protecting it from your kids. It's preserved by putting them in front of real decisions early, letting them fail small, and celebrating them long before the handoff. If you're running a family business, ask yourself who in your next generation is actually leading something right now, not just learning about it.

Antonio’s Take

In my book, Talk to Me, I argued that Millennials and Gen Z aren't lazy, they're misunderstood, and construction is proof. Younger folks stepping onto a jobsite and saying "there's got to be a better way" isn't disrespect for the trade. It's exactly the instinct that keeps a legacy industry alive another fifty years. I've watched family businesses treat that question as a challenge to experience instead of a gift. The pre-internet generation built the foundation. The next generation wants to build on it faster and smarter. Both are right. If a young hire on your crew asks why you still do it the old way, don't shut it down. Instead, ask them what they'd be willing to try differently. That question might be your succession plan starting to work.

Antonio’s Take

Companies keep building reskilling programs off next year's forecast, but I think they're missing skills already sitting in the room. I had a manager once ask an assistant manager to write down his top three life goals, one of which was building a gaming app. That skill wasn't on any forecast. It became insight into a tool that helped increase revenue and cut costs. You don't always need a forecast to tell you what's coming. You need to ask your people what they're already building on their own time. Somebody in your shop is teaching themselves something right now that could change your business. Before you buy the next training package, walk the floor and ask what your people already know how to do.

Antonio’s Take

When was the last time you looked at your org chart and saw it for what it actually is now, five generations deep instead of three? That delayed retirement number doesn't surprise me one bit. I've watched family businesses treat their older workers like they're on the way out the door, while the younger ones get told they're not ready yet. Both groups end up stuck, and stuck people stop contributing their best. Here's the practical piece. If your workforce is aging in place, that's not a problem to manage, it's a resource to use. Pair your longest-tenured people with your newest ones on real projects, not just mentorship in name only. Consistency beats intensity, and this is a long game worth playing now.