THE PEACEMAKER

Even within the constraints of patriarchy, women wield immense power. Once upon a time, women stopped conflicts between kingdoms at war. Now, they stop billionaire families from breaking apart in their role as chief emotional officers

- Ankita Mookherjee

A scene in Guru, a film directed by Mani Ratnam, has the protagonist Gurukant Desai facing an enquiry commission alongside his wife Sujata, who is asked the reasons for her presence. She replies that she is an initial promoter of the company and a 50% partner in the company.

This scene, like the rest of the film, upholds familial bonds as sacrosanct. Naturally then, the role of the life partner seamlessly flows into being a partner in the company and an equal party to the fate that befalls the business. Sujata, steadfast in her faith as a devoted wife offers unconditional support to Desai as he faces the trials and tribulations of life.

Sujata acts as a psychological ballast to her husband as Gurukant goes on to expand the business. She is playing the role of what today is known as chief emotional officer.

Family First

At their core, family businesses are families first, and it is easy to assume that they uphold values of love, trust, respect and unconditional support. But if that was indeed the case then family businesses should have been sailing along smoothly, where each member would do their part to help it prosper. But here is the thing with family businesses, they have a great propensity to run into trouble. Why you ask?

Well to begin with relationships in these family businesses are not always cordial. Not everyone is on the same page and to complicate matters further they are not entirely professional either. You cannot just walk away from the business. Because there are emotions at play-deep and at times disconcerting ones.

"Emotions do not always stem from reasons so there is no point in looking for rational explanations in family strifes. What makes someone take offence, an injustice, favouritism, unfairness shown by a patriarch can cause deep hurts that linger, simmer and can boil over into conflicts," says Janmejaya Sinha, chairman of India practice at BCG, a consultancy.