This article argues that family business centers need to align themselves with their universities' missions through strategic planning. It further argues that in most cases this means building the program on an academic base of either teaching or research. Part of establishing that base includes analyzing the balance among teaching, research, and service (i.e., using the “Holistic Model”). Without this approach, the risk of failure greatly increases. The experience discussed throughout this article is that of a small, private, liberal arts university that, using the approach recommended, built its center on the foundation of teaching. Many of these issues warrant further research.
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