PDFB sponsors a yearly 3-day intensive retreat and maintains an online discussion and sharing space.

PDFB is first and foremost a learning community; a safe environment in which colleagues can feel comfortable sharing tentative ideas, discussing failures, asking for feedback and genuinely exploring our practices. Because we work mostly alone with our clients, we have insufficient opportunities for such dialogues with professional colleagues. Family Firm Institute conferences and regional study groups provide learning opportunities across the disciplines and for less experienced consultants within the disciplines; but PDFB is the forum for the growing edge of knowledge and feedback within the community of seasoned family/business systems and mental health professionals.

Participant Profile

PDFB members are all actively engaged in helping family businesses resolve challenges related to people working together. All members are invited to participate in the retreat, and many members participate in monthly videoconference sessions, discussing theory, tools and/or cases. We are almost all either family therapists, psychologists (organizational or clinical), or have psychiatry or social work degrees. A few are OD consultants and professionals trained in family systems. We also have a few members who originate from business consulting backgrounds but are competent in family systems practice and thinking. We all bring significant practical experience with business-owning families. Each member, in fact, is unique; but none of us is new to this field.

Why Participate?

  • Join an Exceptional Peer Learning Community. PDFB provides a synergistic learning environment that promotes knowledge, creativity, professional and personal growth, affiliation, respect and fun among participants.

  • Expand Your Theoretical Foundation. Being involved with a group of practitioners from diverse psychologically-oriented backgrounds provides deep and broad discussions of the psychological issues impacting family firms which enhances personal knowledge and contributes to the field. 

  • Engage in Productive Debate. PDFB provides a forum for constructive debate, productive critique, and the opportunity to develop or refine your own insights into theory and practice.

  • Engage in Robust Thinking and Dialogue. We encourage participants to prepare their thinking and goals in advance of the Retreat, to take risks with their thinking, and to actively participate in an encounter with others interested in learning.

  • Share Your Emerging Ideas.  All individuals have the opportunity to submit  presentation proposals to the program committee, in order to stimulate everyone’s thinking and receive constructive feedback. Presenting is informal and is not required.

  • Basics Are Assumed. The experience level of participants allows for advanced discussion without the need to review the basics.

We are accepting inquiries for next year’s Retreat. Group size is limited to 32 participants

Selection Criteria: a professional with training in psychologically-based fields, i.e., family systems, clinical psychology, psychiatry, social work, and organizational development, who has worked with a minimum of 5-10 cases business/organizational cases, and a minimum of 5-10 years of working with families in business contexts. Other selection criteria include: having capacity and willingness to engage in dialogue and contribute intellectually; comfort with critical self-reflection, self-disclosure and vulnerability; being open to building positive relationships with other members. 

If your background, experience and interests sound like a match, please consider joining us at PDFB. 
The next step is to request and complete the application form for review by the membership committee. 
They will be in touch with you to set up a selection interview. After the interview, the committee will meet to review all new applicants, and you will be notified about your status. 

Approved participants can register after February 15th on a first-come first-served basis, subject to available space. PDFB tries to keep all its expenses to a minimum, and the cost of the retreat as low as possible. Those who have airline expenses pay a slightly reduced registration fee to spread out the costs. Registration covers the meetings and most meals. See the Registration page for more information. 

  • Michael Madera (Chair) michael.madera @ maderapartners.com

  • Marilyn Rumsey mjrumseyok @ gmail.com

  • Moira Somers drsomers @ moneymindandmeaning.com

(spaces added to email addresses to stop spam… remove the spaces before and after the “@” to send)

New participants can register after February 15th on a first-come first-served basis, subject to available space.