This coming Saturday, January 16, I am honored to be invited back for the third year in a row to act as a judge for the University of Vermont Global Family Enterprise Case Competition (FECC).

The natural beauty of Burlington, Vermont is a great reason for me to trek up north and when combined with the intellectual stimulation of serious, smart and interesting undergraduate and graduate students competing on 24 teams from top institutions of family business education in 10 countries – it is one of my favorite family business experiences of the year.

Countries represented: Canada (6 teams), China (1), Colombia (1), France (1), India (1), Mexico (2), Netherlands (2), Spain (1), Sweden (1), and USA (8).

The field of study focusing on the enterprising family has been growing steadily in sophistication for at least 30 years. Events like UVM’s FECC are proof of that. The students are so passionate and many of them are involved in their own family enterprises and are looking to hone their skills in order to better contribute.

FECC takes place every January so if you want to be part of this great event (it is really a lot of fun) get in touch with me and I’ll connect you with the right folks. Judging panels are made up of a family business owner/manager, advisor and educator. Keep in mind there is also a built-in recruiting aspect to the event so if your firm can benefit from hiring high-quality, international family business students in various disciplines – this is a great place to be.

Here is a link to the 2015 finalists and award winners.