The real life apprentices

operate into the fourth or beyond. Failures usually stem from “an unfortunate lack of family business succession planning.”

Those who make it to the third generation have learned “control and authority does not always need to be held tightly by one person at the top,” says Sandra Foster, author of the bestselling 6th edition of You Can’t Take It With You.

There are many reasons a business might not stay in a family, so succession plans must consider options like selling to employees or outsiders, merging with outside firms, or winding down, Foster says.

“Family members are not always interested in taking up the reins but in my opinion, not having a succession plan is the issue, not the failure to keep the business in the family.”

Clearly, Donald Trump is a unique and hard act to follow for family members that might wish to succeed him. For him, the next best thing to cloning himself may be to keep doing what he’s doing, giving his kin both senior operational experience as well as the many soft intangibles his unique position conveys.

Campbell says employing next-generation family members in senior operating roles can be rewarding for both the founder-parents who employ and coach, and the offspring who are employed and learn. “The trick is making these two things come true. Not all families succeed in this.”