Family Business @ Work was initiated by Dr. Peter Vogel, author of Social Entrepreneurs @ Work and Generation Jobless?, launched in collaboration with the Business Families Foundation and the Cambridge Family Enterprise Group. This project explores the career paths of NxG family business leaders, shares their stories and provides guidance and advice for tomorrow's NxG family business leaders. This project is an interview series that will be turned into a book in the future. Feel free to read the interviews below.
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​Jan Olszewski - Solaris
Our family business Solaris started as Neoplan Polska, founded in 1994 by my father Krzysztof Olszewski. Neoplan Polska was selling, and since 1996 also building under German licence, low-floor Neoplan city buses in Poland. In 1999 we released our first buses under our own Solaris brand. In 2001 Neoplan Polska was renamed to Solaris Bus & Coach and it is now 100% family-owned. My father was the CEO of our company until 2008 and then replaced by my mother Solange Olszewska. In 2015 my parents left the board and now we have an external CEO for the first time.
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Alessandra Nishimura - Jacto Maquinas Agricolas
Alessandra Nishimura is one of 19 members of the third generation of the family business. The family business was started by her grandfather in 1948, who had 7 children of which only 5 were shareholders in the company. In 1980, Alessandra's father took the lead of Jacto Maquinas Agricolas. In more than 60 years of family business history, the company has witnessed a lot of challenging situations that had to be overcome. Read the full interview and learn from this inspiring story.
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Antonia Komitova - Creative Solutions
Our family business was founded by my mother in 2004. After being a very successful general manager of several international companies, she decided to start her own business. I joined the family business in 2008. Back in 2005 I graduated from Babson College. In 2008, after 8 years in the US, I quit my job and moved back to Europe. In the beginning of 2009, I decided to take a break from work and moved to Paris in a day to learn French for the next 6 months. In 2010, I started my first venture within the family business – an events platform, focusing on networking and entertainment for local and international young professionals in Sofia.
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Simón Torres - Grupo Contempo
Simon Torres comes from a second generation family business from Colombia. His father started designing and constructing commercial, residential and institutional real estate throughout Colombia from the beginning of the 70’s till the end of the 90’s. My generation took over the business in 2004 and restructured it with an external CEO and board of directors.
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Farida F. El Algamy & Ramia M. El Algamy - Tharawat Magazine
Farida and Ramia El Agamy, together with their father and mother, established the Tharawat Family Business Forum and the Tharawat magazine. The sisters have been working together and for their family ever since.
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Ralitza Uzunova - Interservice Uzonovi
Ralitza Uzunova is 2nd generation in her family business Interservice Uzonovi, which originated in the first years after the communist regime fell in Bulgaria. The business started as a copy shop and now counts 150 employees. Today, the company is also involved in real estate, import and sale of audio-video appliances, office equipment, among other things.