Ask any family member and they are usually able to identify the current family leader. This is the person around whom everyone gathers; the person who takes responsibility for family networking, intervenes in family disputes, reminds others of the family’s history and generally serves as the glue that holds the family together. And when this family matriarch, patriarch, or other family leader dies, sadly many families struggle to maintain their shared bonds.

As the National Center for Family Philanthropy continues its ongoing focus on the topic of transitions, this Passages Issue Brief shares the Kaplan family’s experience with transition—the factors that contributed to their success and those that challenged them—in hopes of helping other families who will inevitably face leadership transitions of their own.

Read the full article about transitions by Mollie Bunis and Dinaz Mansuri at the National Center for Family Philanthropy.