CATEGORY

The Chinese have a saying about family businesses: the first generation builds the company, the second generation grows the company, and the third generation destroys the company. There are many examples of this growth and decline in many countries, especially in Indonesia where the business conglomerates - mostly owned by ethnic Chinese - are notoriously secretive; their companies' trials and tribulations are known only to a very select group. However, every once in a while, one of the insiders opens the company's doors and allows the general public a chance to see what has really transpired over the generations. Even less frequently are these stories allowed to be published in a book. Family Business is one of those rare books. For the first time, the inside story of one of Indonesia's largest traditional medicine companies is available in the English language. From the tales of the founder's struggles in raising a family and managing a company, to the passing of command to its second and third generations, Family Business is a real insider's account of how in business, everything is personal. Filled with anecdotes and court cases, advertising campaigns and newspaper clippings, Family Business is an Indonesian success story and case study detailing what to do - and more importantly what not to do - in running a family business. It should be required reading for entrepreneurs all over the globe. ABOUT THE AUTHORS ASIH SUMARDONO has worked as a journalist since 1986 - for the BBC, Reuters, The Wall Street Journal and the Far Eastern Economic Review. Most of that time has been spent in Asia, covering uprisings in Thailand and Burma, wars in Cambodia, East Timor and Afghanistan. MARK HANUSZ is the author of the critically acclaimed Kretek: The Culture and Heritage of Indonesia's Clove Cigarettes and co-author of A Cup of Java. He is also the founder of Equinox Publishing.