Season 2, Episode 5 of the Family IN Business Podcast
Along with their younger sister Melissa Steiner, Stephanie Jackson and Kimberly Paxton-Hagner are co-owners of their multigenerational family enterprise, Kwik Lok. If you’ve ever bought bread, tortillas, or apples in a bag, you’ve already used their product! Their grandfather, Floyd Paxton, invented the plastic closure tab that keeps food fresh and tracks the supply of many of our favorite foods.
The sisters’ road to family enterprise leadership started as a total surprise: their grandfather and father never intended for women in their family to take over the business. But their father’s sudden passing left a leadership gap, and the Paxton sisters had to ask themselves: What do we do? How will we do it? And why should we do it?
Listen as our guests discuss their trepidation and inspiration finding their purpose within their family enterprise, in roles they never thought they’d take on. We are also joined by experts Rob Lachenauer and Jennifer Pendergast, who offer thoughts on organizational change, defining purpose, and winning employee buy-in.
Show Notes:
Theme: Embracing a purpose you never thought possible
Your host:
Esther Choy, President and Chief Story Facilitator of Leadership Story Lab, author of Let the Story Do the Work (AMACOM)
Special thanks to:
Stephanie Jackson and Kimberly Paxton-Hagner, co-owners of Kwik Lok Corporation
Karen Reed, Global Director of Marketing and Communications, Kwik Lok Corporation
Rob Lachenauer, Co-Founder and CEO of BanyanGlobal Family Business Advisors, author of Family Business Handbook (Harvard Business Review)
Jennifer Pendergast, Executive Director of John L. Ward Center for Family Enterprises, Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University
Contact us: familyenterprises@kellogg.northwestern.edu
Key Moments:
5:25 – How the Paxton sisters’ diametrically opposed parents influenced their role in business
7:25 – Early memories of the family business
9:06 – Why and how the sisters wanted to be owners of the family business
13:10 – Finding female role models
13:38 – Finding greater purpose for their enterprise—and resistance
18:08 – Esther’s three key lessons from the Paxton sisters’ case—including what makes a great purpose statement
22:25 – The complexity of a purpose statement and how to craft one, with Rob Lachenauer
26:19 – How owners can get employee buy-in for company goals, with Jennifer Pendergast
30:13 – Managing major—and sometimes unexpected—organizational transitions, with Rob Lachenauer
33:04 – The voicemail the Paxton sisters would leave their father now
33:47 – The “family glue” in family enterprise
Download “Embracing a Purpose You Never Thought Possible: Stephanie Jackson and Kimberly Paxton-Hagner of Kwik Lok” Paxton-Sisters-Transcript-Final.pdf – Downloaded 723 times – 175.41 KB
Next Episode: 6. A Hard Reset on Purpose for Family Business: Adam Farver of Pella Corporation
Better Every Story
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People forget facts, but they never forget a good story. In her book, Esther Choy shares business storytelling methods, examples and practical tools and templates. It’s your essential leadership storytelling toolkit.
People forget facts, but they never forget a good story. In her book, Esther Choy shares business storytelling methods, examples and practical tools and templates. It’s your essential leadership storytelling toolkit.
