Taking over their father’s Melbourne construction business was a steep learning curve for brothers Mark and Lee Griffiths.
While they had worked with their father Stephen at Griff & Lee Constructions for two decades, and it was always assumed they would take over, attempts to speak to their father about retirement fell on deaf ears, and conversations about the transfer of the business were few and far between.
“Dad was around 70 when we started talking to him about his future plans and the ownership structure of the business. But he never liked discussing the future,” Mark, 38, says.
“Our communication with Dad dropped off because he … didn’t want to give up what he worked a lifetime to build.”
With young families of their own, Mark and Lee wanted to make sure they future-proofed the business and had protections in place to ensure the business would carry on if Stephen needed to step away suddenly.
It’s a common enough story – according to PwC’s 2026 family business survey, 37 per cent of family businesses report resistance from the older generation to transition.
The result is that one-third of the 1.4 million business owners set to retire in the next 10 years – or 467,000 Australian businesses – don’t have a succession plan, PwC found.
Sadly, Stephen didn’t get to enjoy retirement and he died in April after battling cancer for 18 months.
But in that time, his sons were able to get everything in place in time to take over the reins, which enabled the business to continue trading.
Mark advises others to start frank conversations early and have written plans in place to avoid assumptions and misunderstandings.
“Plan for the worst and hope for the best. In hindsight, there’s a lot we wish we had done differently.
“Having said that, we reckon Dad would be proud of the legacy we’re carrying on for him.”
The elephant in the room
Succession is one of those topics that every family business agrees is critical, but many then quietly put off.
Delays to succession planning are common because people don’t like to consider their death, says Jonathan Scholes, wealth management adviser at Findex.
For those who are avoiding the conversation, it adds an unnecessary level of risk to the future of their business, but early conversations can make the process much smoother, he says.
The PwC report identifies a leadership vacuum, strategic drift and family conflict as some of the biggest risks of delaying succession conversations.
There are also sometimes technical issues that need addressing.
“Matters like licences or contracts tied to individuals need to be identified early and the next generation needs structured development to prepare to lead,” says Samantha Vidler, national private markets leader, PwC Australia.
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“The businesses that get this right are the ones that start the conversation years before the transition occurs.”
The PwC survey found that when roles, expectations and timelines are clear, ownership and leadership transitions don’t have to be disruptive.
Succession challenges
One challenge that Jordan Kennedy, a high-net-worth adviser and partner at Pitcher Partners, sees parents with multiple children struggle with is deciding which child to anoint as their successor.
“It’s often best to hand adult children small sections of the business to manage as a test and see how they go,” he says.
In other cases, not all siblings want to be involved in the business, so founders are faced with the challenge of providing an equitable outcome.
Kennedy says a common approach is to deal with non-business assets first, setting up adult children who aren’t involved in the succession plan.
This could include paying school fees for grandchildren with income from the business, before turning their attention to the business transaction.
Kennedy says this evens out a living inheritance across children and also reduces the worth of the business, allowing it to be handed over to the child willing to take over.
“That way the value of the business becomes irrelevant because they’ve already carved up the pie among the family members before they handle the business transaction,” Kennedy says.
Having no successor is another challenge founders face – 30 per cent of family businesses report a lack of interest from the next generation to join, according to PwC.
In these cases, a sale will usually be necessary, and this, too, will take some planning.
Kennedy adds that the financial practices of some family businesses can be messy, as they will often put expenses like new cars and mobile phones through the business for years.
“Some family businesses can be pretty rudimentary in their approach. The reality of what the business is worth becomes distorted, so it’s my job to polish them up so they look attractive to buyers.”
Scholes says there can be other reasons why a trade sale may be preferable to a family succession.
“Sometimes the business can get to a size that it’s not viable to pass on to children, so you’re putting off selling it to someone else and passing the money on to the next generation,” Scholes says.
When succession goes wrong
Kennedy says he’s had abuse hurled at him as succession conversations in his office descend into swearing and name-calling when parents become frustrated at adult children they deem not yet ready to take the reins, while children challenge parents struggling to let go.
“It’s horrendous. I’ve been sworn at and called names, but inevitably I use psychological steps of letting them speak to uncover the real problems,” Kennedy says.
“It can be soul-destroying… to have an outsider assess their life’s work and assign a value to that, so succession plans are often delayed,” Kennedy says.
“But too many businesses kick the can down the road rather than talk about transactions. Unless something is on fire in the business, like someone gets sick – then they will chuck money at it.”
The experts warn that if succession isn’t managed smoothly, hard-earned wealth amassed over a lifetime of work could get tied up in legal proceedings.
A succession success story
But not all business transitions are fraught. Sydney’s George Manoussakis was already working in the family cleaning business when it began to dawn on him that his parents were ageing.
Launched by his parents back in 1976, SKG Services enjoyed strong growth under his parents, Steve and Kathy, but when handling reception became too much for his mother about 15 years ago, George stepped in.
George, 60, says his parents were grateful for the chance to slow down and were open to discussions about succession.
“I always knew I would join Mum and Dad in the business,” George says. “It didn’t really enter my head what the future of the business would be until I was in my late 30s and could see my parents were slowing down.”
He describes his succession as relatively simple. “It was more of a family conversation than a business sale. I just took over the finances and now look after my parents financially.”
Initially, his siblings were also shareholders in the business, but today George is the sole owner and managing director of a business worth $250 million that employs more than 3500 staff operating across cleaning, maintenance and security services.
A third generation – George’s sons Harley, Jesse and Dean – are now working in the business, and with succession conversations ongoing, George hopes that one day his sons will be running the company his own parents built from the ground up.
Source: https://www.afr.com/wealth/personal-finance/1-4m-business-owners-will-retire-by-2036-33pc-have-no-succession-plan-20260527-p6018l