New Book on Succession Planning

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Published on 05/09/2010
Ian Blackman has completed the final draft of a book written for farmers on the complex and problematic topic of succession planning.

The book is entitled Keeping Farming in the Family. The preface of the book is:

THE ISSUE OF SUCCESSION PLANNING FOR A FARMING FAMILY is clearly a very emotional one. Farmers who are interested in succession planning, irrespective of their ethnicity, see themselves as guardians of the land and are farming the property to improve the land and leave it in a better state than when they occupied it.

As people who work the land, most farmers interested in succession have a spiritual connection with the land; and so too do their children, even though they may not all be farmers.

The value of the land is not in dollars if the land continues to pass to the next generation, it has no dollar value. Working on land fulfils a deep seated subconscious need and as such is priceless.

The succession of the family farm to a child is meeting an important emotional need but it should not be at the expense of family harmony. The potential conflict which creates tension in the family needs to be managed with great sensitivity. Professional advisors in this area require negotiating skill. They need to identify the needs of each of the various parties and negotiate a plan which meets everyone’s needs. Unfortunately few accountants and lawyers have training as negotiators and facilitators.

It is rare for the non-succeeding children to challenge the desirability of the farm succeeding to the next generation, but often those children are concerned to ensure that their inheritance is not ignored in the process. Although in previous generations parents often put farm succession ahead of the interests of the other children, this is no longer the case. Fairness for all the children is usually an important objective for the parents.

It has taken some time for Ian to finish the book and it is currently being reviewed by a number of friends and colleagues.

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