Publications
Publications
- October 2024
- HBS Case Collection
Reed Group and Succession in a Family Business: An Impossible Job to Fill?
By: Lauren H. Cohen and Tonia Labruyere
Abstract
James Reed had taken over Reed Group, the recruitment and career services company his father had founded and built, in 1994. He was now reflecting on succession planning and other challenges that lay ahead: with no obvious choice among his family members, he needed to figure out where the Group's next CEO would come from. It was important to James Reed that the new CEO shared his family's values and purpose for the business, Improving Lifes through Work. Many employees of the Group were very attached to the purpose and especially the charity angle, which was emphasized through the Reed family's charity foundation, which was gathering momentum with its online matchfunding solution. James Reed also expected major innovations in the recruitment space over the coming years, mostly from AI tools, and he wanted Reed Group to be involved in and ready for disruptive changes in that space.
Keywords
Charity; Succession Planning; Family Business; Values and Beliefs; Management Succession; Mission and Purpose; Family Ownership; Philanthropy and Charitable Giving; Family and Family Relationships; Recruitment; AI and Machine Learning; Employment Industry; United Kingdom; London
Citation
Cohen, Lauren H., and Tonia Labruyere. "Reed Group and Succession in a Family Business: An Impossible Job to Fill?" Harvard Business School Case 825-084, October 2024.