For next-gen family office members, one of the biggest decisions is whether to join the family business.

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For next-gen family office members, one of the biggest decisions is whether to join the family business. The process can be exciting but also emotionally fraught, full of expectations as well as the potential for disappointment. And for some, it can be an enormous comfort and a confidence booster — a sign of trust that you can carry on the family legacy.

To understand more about what goes into this decision and the challenges and opportunities inherent in joining the family business, we talked with several next-gen family members — a brother and sister who took different paths before making the leap, two brothers whose careers have mirrored each other, and an oldest child who followed her father across the Atlantic.

CEM AND MERT ZORLULAR

Cem is the CEO and his younger brother Mert the CFO of Er-Kim Pharmaceutical, their family’s pharmaceutical company in Turkey.  

What made you go into the family business?

Cem: Previously, I worked at a consulting company and then joined tech giant Palantir on the commercial side. Our decision to join the family business and return to our native Istanbul was driven by circumstance. We have a very small family, and after the death of our father, our 85-year-old grandfather decided he no longer wanted to oversee the business. And they came to me. It felt like a calling. I said I would kick myself if I didn’t do it.

Mert: My background is in finance and engineering, and I also worked at Palantir. Then Cem convinced me to move to Turkey. He had a very large scope, and many things needed to be optimized. Because of my finance background, he thought that would be ideal for me. I was not excited at first, but when he talked about his broader vision for the company, I was sold.

Cem: Since we were young children, they instilled in us this concept of needing to work together.

Mert: Eventually, we would join the company, but it was a matter of time and age. We wanted to stand on our own two feet before joining so we could be bolder when doing things, as opposed to being trained.

How is it going so far?

Cem: We want to take it from a regional company to a global company; so we are working on building that international footprint, addressing the frictions and trying to make us as nimble as possible — which can be challenging with pharmaceuticals, given the supply chain issues and regulatory issues.

Our grandfather gave the company to us, saying: “I will be here if you need mentoring, but all the mistakes are for you to make.” When he felt that we were doing something wrong, he would say he disagreed, and that allowed us to learn from it.

Any advice for next-gen members pondering the same decision?

Cem: Ask yourself: How passionate about the business are you? Because family businesses require a lot of involvement and interest. Two, do I have an area of responsibility that I am accountable for? Then, how am I going to manage my relationships with family members? How do I build that transparency and honesty, where there are egos involved? Family businesses fail when people don’t get along.