Family Firm Institute

What Family Firm Institute does

Family Firm Institute (FFI) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit professional association founded in 1986 and headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts, that serves the global community of professionals working with family enterprises. It educates, connects, and inspires advisors, consultants, educators, researchers, and family enterprise members through a portfolio of educational programs, scholarly publications, and professional networking services. FFI's core offerings include the Family Business Review (FBR) scholarly journal—published by SAGE since 1988 and ranked 34 of 323 business journals with a 2-year impact factor of 7.7; the Global Education Network (GEN) offering online certificates in Family Business Advising and Family Wealth Advising delivered through a dedicated learning platform (ffigen.org, powered by Thought Industries); FFI Practitioner (a weekly publication); FFI on Friday (member newsletter); and an annual Global Conference rotating across major international cities (2026 New York, 2027 London). The organization also operates the 2086 Society applied research program, FFI Directories (Fellows, Organizational Members, Virtual Study Groups), an annual Awards program, and virtual study groups spanning regions and specializations including Asian Circle, Iberoamerica, Africa, Women in Family Enterprise, Mediation, and Systems Thinking.

FFI's business model is fundamentally membership-based and subscription-recurring, with revenue derived from individual memberships (Student $200, Educator/Researcher $550, Professional $975), organizational memberships for professional firms ($3,750-$23,400), educational institutions ($2,000-$14,300), and associations ($7,000-$16,000), all tiered by member count. Additional revenue streams include GEN certificate program fees, annual Global Conference registration, 2086 Society research contributions, and the 40th Anniversary Campaign fund established in 2025. FFI members receive complimentary subscriptions to Family Business Review through SAGE's publishing platform. Memberships are non-refundable and valid for one year from enrollment. The organization is governed by a globally distributed Board of Directors comprising thought leaders from institutions including Cambridge Judge Business School, EDHEC Business School, Wealth Management Institute Singapore, Bernstein Private Wealth Management, Forsters LLP, and Lansberg Gersick Advisors. Operating geographies span North America, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia Pacific across at least eight countries.

Name

Family Firm Institute

Legal name

Family Firm Institute, Inc.

Website

https://ffi.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1986

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

Family Firm Institute is a Boston-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit professional association founded in 1986 that educates, connects, and inspires advisors, consultants, educators, and researchers serving family enterprises globally through publications, certificate programs, and an annual conference.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Professional Association and Education Services for Family Enterprise

NAICS

Professional Organizations (81392)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Next-Gen Education & Family Learning Programs (FSAAADAM)

akta.pro secondary industry

Family Business & Succession Advisory (FSAAADAL)

Keywords

• Family enterprise advising
• Professional membership association
• Scholarly publishing
• Succession planning education
• Professional credentialing

Headquarters

HQ city

Boston

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Individual Membership Fees: FFI charges annual membership fees for individual professionals, educators, researchers, and students. Individual membership ranges from $200/year (student) to $975/year (professional), providing access to the member directory, Family Business Review archive, publications, and virtual study groups.
2. Organizational Membership Fees: FFI offers organizational memberships for professional firms, educational institutions, and associations with tiered pricing based on number of members (1-10 members: $3,750; 11-25: $8,000; 26-50: $12,000; 51-100: $23,400 for professional; Educational: $2,000-$14,300; Association: $7,000-$16,000). Organizational members receive directory listings, conference discounts, and 10% off GEN programs.
3. Global Education Network (GEN) Certificate Programs: FFI GEN offers online certificates in Family Business Advising and Family Wealth Advising drawing on 40+ years of practice and research. Organizational members receive 10% off GEN programs. Programs are delivered in a convenient online format with internationally renowned faculty.
4. Family Business Review Journal: Family Business Review (FBR) is published by SAGE. FFI members receive complimentary annual subscriptions to FBR as a membership benefit. Non-member access is managed through SAGE Publishing.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

Family Firm Institute is a global nonprofit membership association that provides education, credentialing, research, and networking resources to professionals who serve family enterprises. Its core offerings include individual and organizational memberships, the GEN (Global Education Network) certificate program in family enterprise advising, the Family Business Review scholarly journal, the annual FFI Global Conference, and applied research grants through the 2086 Society.

Product overview

Family Firm Institute (FFI) offers a portfolio of interconnected professional development and research services for the family enterprise field. The core offerings include FFI Practitioner (weekly publication) and Family Business Review (academic journal published by SAGE) for thought leadership and scholarly research; the Global Education Network (GEN) providing online certificates in Family Business Advising and Family Wealth Advising; FFI on Friday newsletter for member communications; and annual Global Conferences. Additional services include FFI Directories (Fellows, Organizational Members, Virtual Study Groups), an Awards program recognizing excellence across academic and practice categories, and the 2086 Society research grant initiative. Membership programs provide access to all publications, directories, and community features across individual and organizational tiers.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• FFI Practitioner: Weekly publication providing thought-provoking analysis, trends, and research affecting professionals in the family enterprise community.
• Family Business Review (FBR)
• Global Education Network (GEN)
• FFI on Friday

Quantifiable outcome

• Family Business Review ranked 34 out of 323 journals in Business (2025 Journal Citation Reports)
• +3 more outcomes

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Wealth Management Institute (WMI)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 September 2025FFI and the Wealth Management Institute (WMI) collaborated on a joint research project titled 'Asia's Succession Moment: Closing the Planning Gap to Safeguard Legacy,' released in September 2025. The report examines succession planning gaps in Asian family enterprises and represents a significant research collaboration between the two organizations.
• SAGE PublishingcoreTechnology or IntegrationFamily Business Review (FBR), FFI's flagship scholarly journal, is published by SAGE Publishing. SAGE provides the publishing platform, distribution infrastructure, and institutional access management for FBR. FFI members receive complimentary annual subscriptions to FBR through SAGE's platform.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Market position

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ffiglobal
• Facebookfacebook.com/ffiglobal
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/the-family-firm-institute

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Family Firm Institute