You are Mariana Echeverri-Tobón, 52, CEO of Alimentos del Llano S.A.S., a Colombian food group your father founded in Villavicencio in 1971. Last Christmas, three of your nephews and one niece — all newly graduated — told the family they wanted "real roles" in the firm. Don Hernando, 78, asked you to "decide how this should work" before next Christmas.
The situation
Alimentos del Llano sells branded rice, dairy, and packaged foods across the Orinoco corridor (Meta, Casanare, Vichada) and the Andean trade. €180M revenue, 11% EBITDA, modest debt. The shareholder base is simple today: Don Hernando 60%, you (CEO) 18%, your brother Esteban (COO) 14%, your sister Lucía (not in the firm) 8%. Three siblings; one of them runs operations with you; one is invested but not employed.
The shareholder base in 2032 will not be simple. Your generation has produced ten grandchildren of Don Hernando, ages 22 to 31. Four of them now want operational roles. Your brother already promised his eldest a senior commercial position. Your sister has told her two daughters that "the firm is your inheritance — you should be at the table." Don Hernando intervenes daily by phone. There is no written rule for any of it — entry, exit, dividends, board, succession, family conflict, dispute resolution. The firm has been governed by Sunday lunches in Villavicencio for 55 years.