ADVISORY BOARDS:
guiding family businesses
ADVISORY BOARDS:
guiding family businesses
ADVISORY BOARDS:
guiding family businesses
PARALLEL SESSION
Speakers: Louise Broekman, Rob Davis and Alice Horne
Date and time: Friday 23 May 2025, 11:15am – 12:00pm
SESSION OVERVIEW
More family businesses are appointing advisory boards to help navigate complex risks and opportunities, and to provide valuable guidance and expertise to their management teams or boards. This trend aligns with a global shift, driven in part by the increasing challenges family businesses face, such as digital transformation, ESG, financial management, and succession planning, to name a few.
In this session, we will explore the growing role of advisory boards, highlighting the latest global trends and insights from family business and family office research. Led by Louise Broekman, founder of the Advisory Board Centre, this panel will share insights on the practical applications of advisory boards and how they function within governance frameworks to support the sustainability and growth of family businesses.
Alice Horne, whose family business, Stillwell Family Group has various board structures, and FBA Specialist Accredited Advisor Rob Davis, will share the strengths, benefits, and challenges from their perspectives. Together, they will provide examples of how advisory boards can effectively guide family businesses through complexity and change.
SPEAKERS
Louise Broekman
Founder, Advisory Board Centre
Louise is an award-winning entrepreneur, researcher, business advisor and founder of the professional body for the advisory board sector, with industry and government recognition for her contribution to the business sector.
Louise has the unique advantage of having been on both sides of the table; in the shoes of a founder and that of a chair of multiple Advisory Boards. Louise, recognised first-hand how a well-run Advisory Board can positively impact CEOs and the business at large. Upon exiting her multinational business, Louise led international research and served as chair for commercial Advisory Boards. As founder of the Advisory Board Centre, Louise leads the Global Research Council and is an in-demand speaker, regularly called upon as the leading voice for Advisory Boards globally.
Rob Davis
Trusted Advisor, Enginuity Consulting
Rob is a generalist business consultant in WA with over 40 years of experience working in the Family Business and Innovation spaces.
Originally trained in engineering, Rob worked with 2 of WA’s most successful technology developers in technical, financial and corporate management roles helping to take their technologies global.
For the last 26 years however, Rob as worked as an independent consultant across the full range of issues facing businesses, particularly the varied and complex issues facing Family businesses. Most work now is concentrated on Governance, Leadership, Strategy and Culture, particularly during business succession, exit or family office phases. This often involves setting up and chairing advisory boards and guiding the overall transition processes.
He has been involved with FBA since 2011, is an accredited Specialist FBA Advisor, Forum Facilitator and delivers the FBA Governance and Directors course. He is also an active Angel (early stage) investor and chairs South West Angels in WA.
Alice Horne
Board Director, Stillwell Family Group
Alice is a Rehabilitation Physiotherapist, a third-generation member of the Stillwell Family, and has been actively involved in the family business through Family Retreats and Next Generation Forum groups since the age of 15. The Stillwell Family Business and Family Office have upheld a robust governance model and a strong culture of successful custodianship for over 25 years, following the passing of their grandfather, Bib Stillwell, in 1999.
Currently, she serves as a Director on our Family Board (Eighth Lehem Pty Ltd) and Next Generation Boards (Stane Brae Investments and Stillinvest3 Pty Ltd), overseeing the governance structures and investment interests of the Family Trusts.
On a personal note, Alice is a proud mum to two children, Amelie (8) and Oscar (5). Together with her husband, Andrew (known to almost everyone as Boof), they cherish family time, especially at the beach or traveling to visit relatives in Tasmania. She also enjoys cooking and baking for friends and family whenever time permits.
all sessions
Explore all the sessions on offer at this year’s Family Business Conference: Asia-Pacific. Each session has been thoughtfully crafted to provide you with real-world tools and takeaways for navigating change in the world of family business. Featuring a range of expert keynote presentations, family business stories, interactive workshops and parallel sessions, every session is designed to equip you with strategies to navigate current challenges, embrace future opportunities, and achieve sustained success for your family business.