You Are the Future—from Family to Nation

The concept of family, which is the fundamental building block of society, is an emotionally rooted social structure in which communication and human values take precedence. The company managed by this structure, on the other hand, is a logic-based system driven by material concepts such as brand, turnover, and profitability. For emotion and logic to come together in a way that sustains success and ensures continuity, they must function as mutually reinforcing values that support one another.

In family businesses, the first generation consists of ambitious, determined individuals who can see the light beyond the wall, and whose goals have become their way of life. The second generation, on the other hand, are individuals who are closely engaged with technology, have completed their education abroad, and have had the opportunity to live under more comfortable conditions. For this reason, they should possess stronger maneuvering capabilities in the face of obstacles ahead.

It is often the case that individuals who have experienced life under different conditions look at events and problems from a different perspective. Let us consider it this way: those who set out first found fertile land, put in the effort, sowed, harvested, and discovered suitable markets. And after all this effort, they earned money. So, what will the second generation do? They will expand the fertile lands and seek out even more productive ones. And what about the third generation? There is only one goal: after selling off the fertile lands built by the father and the son and exhausting the capital, they disappear. Who cares about searching for new fertile lands anyway!

This is why it is quite predictable that problems may arise during the transfer of responsibilities between individuals who have experienced success under such different conditions. In fact, this is the chronic weakness of family businesses: the inability to sustain success over time. Star performers can contribute to a team’s victories up to a certain point, but in a long league marathon, they do not always guarantee consistent returns. For this reason, rather than aiming to be “star performers,” it is more important to focus on building the right team. With the support of professional managers, the transfer of responsibilities should be carried out without being affected by generational conflicts or internal family issues. Continuing the journey with professional management is one of the most appropriate steps toward institutionalization. Once a company becomes institutionalized, operations do not descend into chaos simply because Manager Mehmet left the job. Instead, a transparent, accountable, and fair governance structure emerges.

In Türkiye, the cliché that “the father (first generation) builds, the children (second generation) expand, and the grandchildren (third generation) ruin the business” may not sound appealing at first, but the events experienced often seem to confirm its reality.

In Türkiye, family businesses account for approximately 75% of the Gross National Product. Unfortunately, the rate at which these companies are successfully transferred to the third generation is around 10%. As a result, their average lifespan in the market is only about 20 to 30 years.

More than 40% of the billionaires on the Forbes list are associated with family businesses. Among the top 100 companies, 43% in Italy, 26% in France, and 17% in Germany are family-owned. The world’s second-largest automobile company, Volkswagen, is also a family-controlled business.

What these companies around the world are currently concerned about is not how to transfer knowledge to the third generation, but rather the concern about the very existence of the third generation itself. Because, in Europe, there is supposedly no young generation left that can manage not only companies but even countries.

A Dutch businessman left his entire fortune, unfortunately, to his dog because he had no family members to inherit it. In other words, there was no family member he could leave it to. Therefore, it is highly likely that in 10 years’ time, the Netherlands will be governed by an immigrant. Many family businesses around the world have been forced to shut down due to a lack of heirs. The effort spent to prevent such situations is significant enough that it cannot be ignored. In Germany, there is something called the “babyklappe”. The state’s message in this regard is quite meaningful: whether legitimate or not, it does not matter—bring children into the world. And do not worry; we will take care of them and raise them for the benefit of our country. The financial support given to children in European countries is also at a very significant level compared to conditions in our country. So why is the young population in Europe so concerned? Because if they have no youth, they have no future…

In contrast to what is happening in the world, Türkiye has a young population of nearly 13 million. This means that the likelihood of Turkish youth becoming part of Europe’s future workforce is quite high. Europe is already aware of this. And in order to shape our young people to resemble themselves, to make them forget their history, and to create minds that are more open to assimilation, they are doing everything they can.

Now, dear representatives of the first, second, or third generation, what should we not do? Let us set aside generational conflicts, family problems, and the question of who the “star” is. Instead, let us focus on how we can properly raise the young people who come after us. Because we must not forget one thing: those who follow us will inherit not only our companies, but also our country. And remember, the future…