Sophie Asburton is a partner Alembic Strategy, who are delivery partners of FBUK’s Future Leaders Programme. Sophie is also co-leader of a family business with her husband.
I’ve sat in rooms – fires lit, flipcharts covered, coffee cooling – where future leaders of family businesses have told me things they’ve never said out loud. Not to their parents, their siblings and, sometimes, not even themselves.
They’ve said things like:
“My sister doesn’t want my job. She just doesn’t want me to be good at it.”
“I’m running the business but Mum won’t call me CEO in case it upsets the others.”
“Some of the family would rather the business fail than see it succeed under my direction.”
These are real people, in real businesses, trying to lead through a minefield of emotion, expectation and legacy. I understand more than I used to because I’ve lived some of it myself.
When I married into my husband’s family business, I walked in thinking I was emotionally intelligent, grounded, clear-eyed, and yet I ran headfirst into my own blind spots. The assumptions, the subtle hierarchies, the ways in which trust is earned, or withheld, based on a history you weren’t even around for.
That experience changed how I work with others. It’s also shaped the design of FBUK’s new Future Leaders Programme.
The Hidden Work of Family Business Leadership
This new programme isn’t just about business strategy. It’s about becoming the kind of leader who can hold all the contradictions of family and business without being pulled apart by them.
Leading a family business is different. You’re not just managing staff, you’re managing siblings. You’re not just working with a Board, you’re negotiating with a parent who still calls you “darling” in meetings. There’s no HR manual for that.
Yet, you’re also running a business that must succeed commercially. Family dynamics don’t pause for that. The tension is real and sometimes painful. But it’s also where the growth happens.
What it Feels Like
The programme is built for the intersection where leadership, legacy and love collide. Participants tell us that it feels like a pause button for your life. It’s immersive, reflective and quietly transformational.
We mix structured sessions with honest conversations. We explore practical leadership tools: how to
chair meetings, navigate conflict and get clear on your role. But we also go deeper: what kind of impact do you want to have in the world? What kind of legacy are you inheriting and what kind of legacy do you want to leave? And yes, there are moments of laughter, frustration and shared relief. When people sit in a room with others navigating similar dynamics, they stop feeling alone and start feeling equipped.
From Self-Doubt to Self-Definition
Many future leaders come in carrying their quiet fears:
“I’ve only ever worked in the family business.”
“I don’t even know who I report to.”
“I run a department now but how am I supposed to run the whole thing?”
By the time they leave, they’re not fixed (none of us are ever fixed) but they are more grounded. They’ve
named their fears, tested ideas, and reconnected to purpose.
The FBUK Future Leaders Programme is for you if…
• You’re already leading or preparing to.
• You want to find your way through complexity with clarity.
• You’re ready to stop surviving and start shaping the future.
It’s where the next generation starts becoming the kind of leaders we all need – people who can carry legacy without being weighed down by it.