New Global Partnership to Study Mental Health and Implications on Business Families

Caption from the image: How Much Does Mental Health Impact Family Enterprises? Significantly (but we don't know exactly how much - YET). A new research partnership aims to change that...

The Family Enterprise Legacy Institute (FELI) at the Telfer School of Management, University of Ottawa, and the Global Family Business Center (GFBC) at IMD in Lausanne, Switzerland – in collaboration with Family Business Network (FBN) – are pleased to announce a new research partnership focused on the implications of enterprising families’ mental health on the family and business.
 
Despite the profound impact mental health challenges place on the workplace, family and society, there is still limited research and understanding of how these issues affect enterprising families. The partnership will work to narrow this gap by leveraging the research strengths and networks of each institution. Project leads are Elizabeth Tetzlaff (FELI member and post-doctoral researcher at Dalhousie University), Peter Jaskiewicz (FELI Director, Telfer Full Professor and Patricia Saputo Distinguished Chair in Family Enterprise) and Peter Vogel (IMD Global Family Business Center Director and IMD Professor of Family Business and Entrepreneurship). FBN CEO Alexis du Roy de Blicquy will work closely with GFBC and FELI throughout the duration of the partnership, providing input and support on this groundbreaking research project.

FELI is focused on creating and sharing knowledge, as well as developing the practices and policies needed to effectively enable the next generation of family enterprise leaders to thrive. The IMD GFBC is devoted to helping families achieve multi-generational success. The Center’s research is informed by the work it has done with many of the world’s leading families and enterprises for more than three decades. Being present in 65 countries, FBN acts as a collective voice for business families around the globe, fostering communication and dialogue across generations. Through this partnership, FELI, IMD-GFBC and FBN aim to capture the prevalence of family owners’ mental health conditions and the associated consequences for family enterprises.

"Mental health, like physical health, is something that no family or individual is immune to.” 
_{- Elizabeth Tetzlaff, project co-lead}

Elizabeth Tetzlaff, who recently completed her PhD under the supervision of Professor Jaskiewicz at Telfer, has been working in mental health research since 2017. As Tetzlaff describes, there is an increasing need to understand how the complexities of being part of a business family can be a challenge to the mental health of some members.

“Mental health, like physical health, is something that no family or individual is immune to and the implications of being diagnosed with a mental health condition doesn’t only affect the individual, but also their family,” explains Tetzlaff.  “In cases where the family is a business family, the implications of such a diagnosis become more complicated, as the impact extends to the business as well as the family. However, understanding this impact is still in its infancy. More research is needed to explore the nuances and how business families can develop healthy and effective coping strategies for both their business and their family.”

"This project is about breaking the silence and paving the way for healthier, more resilient business families."
_{- Peter Vogel, project co-lead}

Recognizing the unique challenges faced by family enterprises, Peter Vogel sees the importance of the partnership in bringing mental health issues to the forefront, and equipping families with the necessary tools to ensure their resilience and long-term wellbeing.

"Mental health is a global challenge and we, as humanity, are starting to become more open and transparent about it. Yet, in the context of business-owning families, this topic is vastly ignored or swept under the carpet. It is hugely important that enterprising families, like anyone else, get access to tools and techniques to most effectively handle complexities that might arise with the diagnosis of a family member with a mental health condition,” says Vogel. “Our partnership with FELI marks a pivotal step in addressing this largely overlooked topic. By bringing this critical conversation to the forefront, we aim to equip enterprising families with the insights needed to safeguard both their members' well-being and their long-term success. This project is about breaking the silence and paving the way for healthier, more resilient business families."

Emotional and family dynamics have been at the heart of FBN peer-to-peer learning for decades. These issues can have a determining impact on succession planning, generational transition, organizational culture, and business performance, yet Alexis du Roy has observed that they are often unknown and invisible.

“We are excited to embark on this collaborative research initiative, uniting the expertise of two great academic institutions and the lived experiences of business families in FBN safe space to identify and comprehend the critical intersection of mental health within family enterprises,” says du Roy.

Expected outcomes of the partnership include a Global Mental Health Report to be presented at the 34th FBN Summit in Miami in November 2025, as well as various research papers over several years. During the partnership, the research team will be engaging directly with business families from around the world, gathering insights about how the dynamics of enterprising families affects members’ mental health.

For more information about this project, please contact Elizabeth Tetzlaff.

To read more about how Telfer is shaping the conversation about the future of family enterprise, visit the Family Enterprise Legacy Institute and subscribe to our newsletter to stay up to date.