With over 50 percent of the world’s economy and approximately 75 percent of businesses in Thailand comprising family enterprises, Sasin launched the first Family Enterprise Case Competition-Asia Pacific (FECC-AP). This platform allows students to find solutions to global family business cases and to develop into future entrepreneurs who can effectively manage the complexities of family businesses. “We want to bring forth the emphasis on family business and family business education and how to develop family business further so that it is more sustainable,” said Tanachote “Champ” Vongsurbchart, Sasin Entrepreneur-in-Residence and an alumnus MBA 2015, who leads the Sustainability and Entrepreneurship Center (Sasin SEC) team in organizing the FECC-AP. Under his guidance, Sasin students, the B-Rabbit team, won the Schlesinger Global Family Enterprise Case Competition (SG-FECC) in Vermont, United States, this January, outperforming twenty-five student teams from 12 countries across five continents. Tanachote stated that the goal of FECC-AP is to develop an understanding of the issues around family businesses with a focus on how to properly run family businesses and ensure that they succeed and survive in the long term. The competition brings together a diverse network of family business owners, managers, and students to promote sustainable family business practices. Out of Sasin, Tanachote is the Merchandise Director of Sin Somboon Trading, a 37-year-old family-run trading company wholesaling electrical appliances throughout Thailand. He manages the procurement of the company, selecting products, and setting prices for their distributors. With over 400 nationwide distributors, Sin Somboon Trading’s annual revenue exceeds 1.5 billion baht. From his own experience, Tanachote believes that the biggest challenge in running a family business is continuing a long-established family business for successive generations to ensure that the business remains stable and sustainable. “It is not easy, and those who take on the task of managing the business as the new generation must have a thorough understanding of the business and strong determination,” he said. Tanachote credits his studies at Sasin for his comprehensive understanding of running a family business, providing valuable insights and applicable knowledge through real family business cases shared by experienced business owners. “This provided insights into family business issues, some of which matched our business and could be directly applied. Additionally, Sasin professors who are consultants with various organizations bring family business analysis principles into the classroom,” he said. Adding to the real-world application of business principals, students competing at FECC-AP get to work on cases not only in Asia but also present family business solutions of American and European brands vigorously competing in price and quality across various sales channels. While competing teams have different experiences and levels of knowledge, students find that they can improve on a myriad of skills when they present their family cases to judges with extensive experience running global family businesses. “This competition helps students develop their understanding of family business management. We can see clear improvements in their understanding, confidence, and presentation skills from the start to the end of the competition,” said Tanachote. Through the FECC-AP, students gain valuable experience and skills, ensuring the longevity and success of family businesses across generations.