Economic Development

Closely held businesses are the backbone of the American economy. Despite the attention aid to the stock market, the 8500 public companies traded there provide only 24% of private sector employment; by contrast, 4.6 million closely held companies provide 76% of employment in the private sector. Practically all the job generation in the country is in the closely held sector. What is the most cost effective means of retaining these businesses and the jobs they provide in our communities? Timely and effective succession planning.

In the early 1980s, studies showed that 30% of family businesses made it to the 2nd generation of family ownership and management and 15% made it to the 3rd generation. Twenty years later, a 2004 US Small Business Administration study found that only 15% made it to the 2nd generation and 5% to the 3rd. It gets worse. The small business monitor survey conducted by the Greater Cleveland Growth Association’s Council of Smaller Enterprises (COSE) found, for example, that only 21% of Cleveland family business owners have written a plan for succession.

The consequence of the absence of succession planning is that too frequently businesses are sold to competitors who may consolidate operations, reducing local employment, or may simply shut the doors and liquidate. The failure to plan for business succession in small and middle-sized closely held businesses is the leading preventable cause of job loss in the US. Recognizing the need for effective succession planning for small businesses, The Ohio Department of Jobs and Family Services (ODJFS) has contracted with the Ohio Employee Ownership Center (OEOC) at Kent State University to pilot a 2 -day program in conjunction with the 22nd Annual Ohio Employee Ownership Conference that provides folks like yourself with the knowledge, tools, and resources for encouraging business ownership succession planning in your communities. This initiative grew out of the OEOC’s successful Cleveland- and Akron-area succession planning programs, which over the last 12 years has organized seminars for nearly 600 small business owners and managers in Northeast Ohio. Contact Chris Cooper or Jay Simecek at 330-672-3028 with questions or to register.

Program Details

Succession Planning Training for Economic Development Professionals - Schedule

All sessions are held at Akron Fairlawn Hilton, 3180 W. Market Street, Akron, OH 44333

April 17th, 9 am-5 pm The Basics of Succession Planning

April 18th, 8 am-4:45 pm Employee Ownership as a Succession Planning and Economic

Development Strategy

Download Flyer here (pdf)

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