Valencia, 8 April 2025. Under the title ‘When and why a Board of Directors in the Family Business’, the Chair of Family Business of the University of Valencia (CEFUV) promoted by the Valencian Association of Entrepreneurs (AVE), EDEM School of Entrepreneurs, the Valencian Institute for the Study of Family Business (IVEFA), the Institute of Family Business (IEF) and the University of Valencia (UV), and with the collaboration of CaixaBank and Broseta, has organised a new breakfast-tertulia in which two renowned figures of the Valencian business network, Eva Blasco García, CEO of Europa Travel, and Ximo Guillén, CEO of Grupo Huevos Guillén, have shared their experiences in the implementation and evolution of the Board of Directors within their respective family businesses.

The event highlighted a key issue in the management of these organisations: the need to clearly differentiate the Board of Directors from the Management Committee, both in terms of functions and composition, to ensure good governance, continuity and professionalisation of the family business.

Governance beyond the day-to-day

‘We need to stop seeing the board of directors as a model of corporate governance for large companies. At a time when good corporate governance has become particularly important, SMEs must see the Board of Directors as the formula for guaranteeing our future sustainability and boosting growth’, said Eva Blasco.Europa Travel, with more than 45 years of history, was committed from the beginning to the existence of a Board, although, as its CEO acknowledged, ‘at the beginning it was not professional and was confused with the Management Committee’. The process of professionalisation was a key evolution: ‘Today we have a five-person Board, separate from the Management Committee. It allows us to look at the company from the outside.

The entrepreneur argued that the Board of Directors is essential, not only to establish a clear and sustained strategy over time, but also to face critical milestones such as generational changes or growth phases: ‘The Board of Directors provides SMEs with greater transparency and makes it possible to overcome the short-term vision of management, designing strategies for the medium and long term. At the same time, it guarantees, in the case of incorporating shareholders who are not involved in the management of the company and independent directors (something that from my point of view is necessary to guarantee its operability), the contribution of an enriching external vision that is key to the growth of companies’.

Professionalisation as a turning point

Ximo Guillén, for his part, explained how in Grupo Huevos Guillén the step towards a more professionalised model was a necessity that arose after years of focusing exclusively on daily operations: ‘In 1996 we only worked, but we did not professionalise. When we realised that this was no longer an option but an urgent need, we decided to create the Board in 2012’.

Currently, the Group's Board meets monthly and is made up of eight people from two family branches. For Guillén, ‘from our experience, the Board of Directors is a guarantee of continuity for family businesses, as in the medium and long term it ensures their survival, and can help to put an end to the stigma that family businesses have in surviving in subsequent generations’.

Furthermore, he stated that ‘in our case, its implementation at a key moment for the company allowed us to undertake the changes that were necessary to achieve our objectives, without them being traumatic for the family’.

Separate to align

Alejandro Escribá, Director of the CEFUV Chair, contextualised the conversation in a broader reflection on the current challenges facing family businesses: ‘We have two great challenges: to be aligned, which requires leadership and processes, and at the same time to know how to separate executive management from corporate governance’. For Escribá, Boards of Directors should be understood as dynamic bodies that evolve together with the company and help reflection and communication.

Conclusion: Board and Committee, two different gears

The conference made it clear that the Board of Directors can no longer be confused with the Management Committee. While the former oversees strategy, sustainability and governance, the latter manages day-to-day operations and executes decisions. Having defined structures, with clearly defined roles and functions, has become an essential element for the professionalisation and longevity of family businesses.

This meeting is part of the cycle of activities of the CEFUV Chair, which seeks to promote knowledge, training and debate on the challenges facing family businesses, a cornerstone of the Valencian and national economy.

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