Case study: Fit 2 Excel? Family. Business. And family business.

Abstract

Fit 2 Excel traces the experiences of Jon and Sheila Stawinski, co-owners of two fitness related businesses (Fit2Excel and Injury2Excellence in Chittenden County, Vermont. As their commercial activities experience rapid growth, the entrepreneurs find themselves immersed in many personal challenges that appear to be inherent in family-run enterprises, and soon find themselves stressed, burdened, and distracted from family matters. As their lives become increasingly frenzied Jon and Sheila must wrestle with pertinent questions regarding business, family, and the balance between the two. The Instructor’s Manual to the case includes analysis that draws upon the Segmentation-Integration Continuum of Family Business and the model of Differential Permeability of Identity in Family Business (Sundaramurthy & Kreiner, 2008), as well as consideration of issues of strategic planning in family business contexts (Jaffe, 2005). The case is intended for use in undergraduate entrepreneurship and family business courses, and specific learning objectives include: (a) managing business/family overlap/integration, (b) establishing boundaries in family business, and (c) the strategic management of family business.