As we move into a new financial year for most, New Zealand family businesses continue to operate in an environment defined by uncertainty, economic volatility and rapid technological change, all of which are happening while many family enterprises face generational transition.
For boards and directors of New Zealand family businesses, the challenge is not simply to manage risk, but to guide the business through change while preserving longterm value, family purpose and legacy.
Drawing on recent boardroom insights from KPMG’s On the 2026 Board Agenda: Private Company Considerations and our experience working with family businesses, we present five practical areas of focus in 2026 for boards of New Zealand family businesses.
The board’s role in longterm value
In an increasingly unpredictable environment, strategy can no longer be a once-a-year discussion. Business owners are faced with an increasing number of challenges that need to be overcome and decisions that need to be made. Effective boards should be deeply engaged in strategic thinking: helping management test scenarios and assess tradeoffs, while staying focused on longterm value creation.
For family businesses, strategy must also align with the family’s vision, ownership intentions and appetite for change. Growth for family enterprises is no longer defined solely by financial expansion. Instead, it encompasses resilience, adaptability and the ability to transition capital, leadership and purpose across generations.
Boards play a critical role in ensuring that:
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Growth strategies align with family values and longterm aspirations
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The business maintains sufficient flexibility to adapt as conditions change, with a focus on building resilience
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Decisions made today do not compromise future options
When boards actively partner with management on strategy, they help turn uncertainty into opportunity.
Having the right people in the right roles, at the right time
Highperforming family businesses consistently demonstrate that effective boards add value well beyond compliance and risk management. They provide strategic challenge, support disciplined decisionmaking and create a forum where longterm thinking can flourish. In times of uncertainty, this role becomes even more critical.
For many New Zealand family businesses, governance structures continue to evolve alongside growth and generational change. While formal boards may not suit every business at every stage, what matters most is fitforpurpose governance that is clearly defined and regularly reviewed.
Boards should be asking:
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Do we have the right mix of skills, experience and independence to support our current strategy and future ambitions?
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Are roles and accountabilities between ownership, governance and management clearly understood?
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Is the board actively engaged in shaping longterm direction, not just monitoring performance?
Boards that bring together family and independent voices across generations, gender and experience are better positioned to challenge assumptions and steward the business through change.
Leading technological change
Technology and artificial intelligence are reshaping how family businesses operate, compete and grow. For many boards, the real challenge is not the technology itself, but the organisational change that comes with it.
Significant investment in systems, data and automation often requires difficult conversations including tradeoffs between shortterm returns and building long-term value and resilience. Boards must ensure that technology decisions are grounded in a clear business case, realistic expectations and a strong alignment with the long-term vision as determined by the family.
Technology-led change is most effective when people sit at the heart of the transformation. Success is driven not just by the technology itself, but by deliberate investment in change management, capability building and cultural alignment.
Boards should be focusing on:
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Whether leadership has the capability to lead technologyenabled change. If not, can we train this, or do we need to hire externally?
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Alignment of the technology change with the long-term family vision
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Cyber security, data privacy and reputational risk
Placing people and the long-term family vision at the centre of technology strategy helps ensure investment delivers sustainable value, not just shortterm efficiency gains.
The importance of communication
Despite their closeknit nature, family businesses can experience communication breakdowns, particularly as they grow and ownership structures becomes more complex.
When family dynamics and business matters overlap, misalignment, unclear expectations and unresolved conflict can quietly erode trust. Clear and constructive communication enables boards to surface issues early, test assumptions and make betterquality decisions, particularly during periods of change.
Boards can play a powerful role in fostering clarity and constructive dialogue by:
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Encouraging structured forums for discussion, such as family councils or owners’ meetings
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Ensuring clear delineation between businessrelated discussions and family issues
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Supporting clear role definition and decision rights
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Introducing independent perspectives to help facilitate difficult conversations
For family businesses, effective communication is not just about alignment. It underpins sound judgement, timely decisionmaking and effective governance, helping ensure the business remains aligned with agreed family values.
Preparing for transition and capital choices
Succession today is broader than leadership alone. It encompasses ownership structures, capital allocation and longterm control. Increasingly, family businesses are considering options such as acquisitions, strategic partnerships or external capital to support growth and transition.
Boards play a critical role in guiding these conversations, ensuring decisions align with family values and longterm objectives.
Boards should be asking:
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Are we clear on our appetite for external capital or partnerships, and how do we ensure values alignment?
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How do these choices affect control, culture and legacy?
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Are nextgeneration leaders being actively prepared for future roles?
Thoughtful governance and early planning can turn transition into a source of strength.
How a family business navigates 2026 will depend on the quality of its governance and the clarity of its purpose. In practice, that means staying disciplined on strategy, ensuring the right people and roles are in place, guiding technology investment and change, supporting clear communication, and planning early for succession and capital choices. Boards that remain engaged, forwardlooking and valuesdriven will help their businesses navigate uncertainty while building lasting value for generations.
If you're thinking about your next steps, we’d love to connect and explore how we can support your goals – together.
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Dana Hussey |
Hamilton
+64 27 323 6958
dhussey@kpmg.co.nz
© 2026 KPMG, a New Zealand partnership and a member firm of the KPMG global organisation of independent member firms affiliated with KPMG International Limited, a private English company limited by guarantee. All rights reserved.
The information contained herein is of a general nature and is not intended to address the circumstances of any particular individual or entity. Although we endeavour to provide accurate and timely information, there can be no guarantee that such information is accurate as of the date it is received or that it will continue to be accurate in the future. No one should act upon such information without appropriate professional advice after a thorough examination of the particular situation.
The views and opinions expressed herein are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views and opinions of KPMG, a New Zealand partnership and a member firm of the KPMG global organisation of independent member firms affiliated with KPMG International Limited, a private English company limited by guarantee.
