Philip is the CEO and Founder of Family Business Central which operates in New Zealand and Australia and provides specialist trusted advisory services to family businesses. Philip has enormous experience as a clinical change practitioner as well as a senior business consultant and has worked with family business owners and executives in London, New York, New Zealand and Australia for the last 28 years.
Philip received his degree in psychology from the University of Otago in New Zealand and his MSW from Adelphi University in New York. He worked in a clinical role with families in Stockbridge Massachusetts and London between 1986 and 1992. After this he worked as a consultant and trusted advisor to organisations in London, New York and Sydney. He is one of the leading developers of the change methodology, ‘Light Touch Change’ which combines core ideas from cybernetics, perceptual control theory and linguistics and applies this to his work with family businesses. Philip is a fellow of the Cybernetics Society in London.
Philip combines his business expertise with a deep knowledge of family psychology and change to create significant outcomes for his clients. While working with a wide range of family businesses, Philip:
- Designed effective succession plans and structures for family businesses to
build their legacies; - Introduced and designed key family and business governance processes and
structures; - Resolved major conflict between family members;
- Created long term family and business strategies;
- Developed and sits on family business advisory boards
- Advised boards and designed board effectiveness assessment processes;
- Facilitated complex family meetings and conferences; and
- Works as a trusted advisor to a number of high-profile family businesses.
Philip has developed a reputation for managing particularly challenging situations as
well as achieving high levels of buy-in to agreements and outcomes for families and
their businesses.
Philip writes and blogs regularly about family business, is often invited onto TV and
radio programs and presents regularly at conferences as an expert advisor on family
business.
