Case Study: How We Handle Disputes As a Father-Son Team in a Family Business

At Interchange Capital Partners, we spend our days helping family-owned businesses navigate complex transitions, manage conflicts, and align generations with a shared vision. But we don’t just advise families—we are one.

As a father and son running a business together, we’ve had to navigate the same four interchanges—self, family, business, and ownership—that we help our clients work through. So, we decided to turn the lens on ourselves and write a case study about how we handle disputes, succession, and the inevitable challenges that come from working with family.

Our transition has not been without challenges. As we shifted leadership responsibilities, we found ourselves facing some key issues:

• Separating family from business: It’s easy for personal emotions to interfere with professional decisions.

• Managing succession: Ahmie transitioning from CEO to Executive Chairman required clearly defined roles and responsibilities.

• Resolving disagreements constructively: Conflict is inevitable, but how we handle it impacts our team, our clients, and our future.

• Keeping our team and clients at the center: Our internal challenges couldn’t be allowed to disrupt the people who depend on us.

We leaned on our own Clarity Foundation™—the same framework we use with clients—to work through these challenges. Here’s how we did it:

• Aligning on a Shared Vision and Values:

  • We sat down and created a family mission statement that aligned our business strategy with our personal values.

  • We used values mapping to identify where we were aligned and where we saw things differently.

  • We defined success criteria to ensure we were working toward the same outcomes, even if our approaches differed.

• Creating a Process for Handling Conflict:

  • We set communication ground rules to make sure our conversations remained constructive, even in tough moments.

  • We committed to an “us vs. the problem” mindset—meaning we focus on solving the issue at hand, not on fighting each other.

  • When needed, we worked with a third-party professional to help mediate conversations and bring outside perspectives.

• Navigating Succession Without Disrupting the Business:

  • We clearly defined leadership roles so we both knew where we needed to step up and where to step back.

  • Brian took the lead on strategic growth initiatives, while Ahmie focused on areas where he could add the most value.

  • We created a structured delegation plan, allowing Ahmie to step away from certain responsibilities while still remaining engaged.

• Separating Personal and Business Decisions:

  • We recognized when personal emotions were influencing business decisions and took steps to recalibrate.

  • We implemented 90-day sprints to set short-term goals and ensure we were aligned on execution.

  • We committed to family meetings where we could discuss personal issues outside of the office, keeping the business running smoothly.

By applying the same principles we use with our clients, we’ve been able to navigate this transition without jeopardizing our relationship or the business. Through this process, we have:

• Built a clear succession plan, ensuring stability for our team and clients.

• Strengthened our father-son communication, allowing us to separate personal and business matters more effectively.

• Created a defined governance structure, reducing unnecessary conflict and improving decision-making.

• Developed a strategy that lets us both focus on what we do best while continuing to grow the business together.

Running a family business isn’t easy—especially when the family dynamics are as strong as the business itself. We tell our clients all the time that succession is about more than just finances and ownership—it’s about relationships, trust, and communication. We had to take our own advice.

For those in a family business navigating leadership transitions and communication challenges, know that you’re not alone. Even the professionals helping other families have to work through it themselves. The key is having the right tools, the right mindset, and a willingness to face the hard conversations head-on.

If you’re looking for guidance on navigating these challenges, let’s talk. We’ve been there ourselves.

Interchange Capital Partners, LLC is registered as an investment adviser with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). This communication should not be deemed as an offer or solicitation to buy or sell any product. Interchange Capital Partners does not provide investment advice prior to entering into an investment management agreement. Interchange Capital Partners, LLC does not provide legal, tax or accounting advice. SEC registration does not constitute an endorsement of the firm by the Commission nor does it indicate that the adviser has attained a particular level of skill or ability.