Daughters in Succession

The practical guide ‘Daughters in Succession – How Female Successors Become Pioneers’  by Simon Caspary and Professor Tom A. Rüsen explores the specific challenges and opportunities of succession by daughters in family businesses. Drawing on empirical insights and the authors’ many years of consulting experience, it shows how daughters can find their own path into business leadership between tradition and renewal. The foreword is written by Christina Diem-Puello, President of the Association of German Women Entrepreneurs (VdU).

Key topics include daughters’ self-concept, their role development between entrepreneurship and motherhood, and how partnerships and couple relationships are shaped in the context of succession. The authors demonstrate how gender stereotypes can be challenged and why equality in succession processes is not only a social imperative but also an economic one. Reflection questions, practical prompts and visual tools – including a development plan – make the guide a hands-on resource for female successors and their families.

A particular highlight is the discussion of eight success factors for female succession – from communication and transition strategies to balancing family and business. The guide closes with a strong case for competence-based succession and encourages readers to take new paths: Competence before gender becomes a guiding principle for a sustainable succession culture in entrepreneurial families.