Case Study: Mohinani Group

The Mohinani Group is a multi-generational family business with operations spanning multiple sectors and geographies. What makes multi-generational family businesses both valuable and complex is that they carry layers of history, relationship, and decision-making practice that serve important purposes—but often at the expense of clarity.

The governance challenge at Mohinani was one Sirdar sees repeatedly in family business work: blurred lines between operational management and strategic board oversight. Family members occupied multiple roles without clear accountability. Succession planning existed in family conversations but not in formal governance. Operational complexity was outpacing the informal governance structures that had worked when the business was smaller and more concentrated.

Sirdar conducted a comprehensive board evaluation with specific focus on family governance dynamics. This required understanding not just governance mechanics but family relationships, values, and the historical decision-making patterns that had built trust over generations.

The evaluation revealed critical issues: the board was spending most of its time on operational matters—effectively functioning as a management committee rather than strategic oversight body. Succession planning existed as unspoken expectation rather than formalised framework. Committee structures were either absent or informal and underutilised. Family members lacked clarity on what decisions they were making in their family capacity versus their business capacity, creating potential for conflict and misalignment.

The outcome included a clear separation of operational versus strategic governance—defining what the board would and would not be responsible for. The board was restructured with defined mandates for different family and non-family members. A succession planning framework was formalised, clarifying how family involvement in the business would evolve across generations. Committee structures were established to handle specialist oversight (finance, audit, remuneration) that the full board couldn’t effectively manage.

Importantly, the governance model was designed to respect family values and the relational foundation that had built the business—the governance framework didn’t try to impose external structures that contradicted how the family actually worked together. Instead, it clarified and formalised the decision-making and accountability that the family wanted.

The Mohinani engagement demonstrates that effective governance in family businesses acknowledges rather than ignores family dynamics. The best governance frameworks for family businesses are ones that the family has shaped, rather than structures imposed from outside.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you separate family decisions from business decisions in family governance?

The key is explicit clarity about which decisions are being made in which capacity. A board decision about capital allocation is a business decision with formal accountability. A family conversation about whether a younger generation member should join the business is a family decision. Governance fails when these get conflated. Clear decision frameworks, formal board authority definitions, and separate family council structures (when appropriate) help maintain this distinction.

What role should non-family members play in family business governance?

Non-family board members bring important external perspective and reduce the risk of family dynamics clouding business judgment. However, their role needs to be designed thoughtfully. Some governance matters benefit from family-only discussion (succession, family values alignment). Others—like audit oversight or major capital decisions—are strengthened by external perspective. The best family boards have clear frameworks for both.

When should succession planning move from family conversation to formal governance?

When the business is large enough that succession affects stakeholders beyond the family—employees, investors, creditors, customers. Formalising succession planning doesn’t diminish family autonomy; it actually protects it by ensuring succession decisions are made deliberately rather than by default when crisis occurs.