Gellert Family Business Center

The University of San Francisco (USF) Gellert Family Business Center is an ecosystem composed of faculty, students, alumni, business owners, employees, and city leaders—all of whom share a passion for supporting and celebrating the work of family businesses in the San Francisco Bay Area. The Gellert Center celebrated its 25th anniversary in May 2024, a testament to the center’s commitment to continuously innovating student, member, and partner engagement.

Call to Action

Family businesses play a critical role in shaping the lives of San Francisco Bay Area community members. Nearly every business corridor in the city is lined with family businesses that significantly contribute not only to the local economy but also to the daily well-being of employees, customers, and neighbors. While they are prominent, family businesses face a unique set of opportunities and challenges. Therefore, they need specialized support to ensure their long-term success.

Additionally, USF welcomes students from around the world, many of whom work in a family business and/or aspire to lead one in the future. When considering local family business owners’ needs and students’ ambitions, the Gellert Center promotes successful next-generation leadership and provides students with experiences and knowledge applicable to local family businesses.

Innovation Description

The USF Gellert Family Business Center is the go-to resource hub for family-owned companies in the San Francisco Bay Area. The center helps families-in-business with their transition needs and supports their long-term success with practical family and business resources, information and networking opportunities, and access to partners—all while advancing the field of family business research, education, and scholarship.

The Gellert Center is led by USF faculty member Monika Hudson, who has extensive hands-on experience and research expertise in family business and entrepreneurship. A Fulbright Scholar, she leverages her relationships with colleagues globally, including in Colombia and the Philippines, to create meaningful experiences for the center’s members and USF students.

Innovation Impact

The Gellert Family Business Center serves the San Francisco Bay Area in multiple ways, such as recognizing excellence, keeping family-owned businesses informed and connected, and advancing the development of family business leadership. It recognizes two family-owned businesses every year, provides support and resources to strengthen their operations, and promotes them throughout the Bay Area.

The center also provides family-owned businesses with access to strategic and practical family business information, networking opportunities, and family business research and education. It conducts family business research to identify and improve potential areas for growth. Through luncheons, dinners, and related events, the center connects family-owned businesses with each other and creates a knowledge base to enhance the family side of business.

Promoting successful next-generation leadership, the Gellert Family Business Center provides students with the opportunity to apply related coursework to local family businesses. USF ensures that family business coursework is offered throughout the school year. The three entrepreneurship courses offered include BUS378 (Family Business Theory and Practice), BUS474-CEL (Family Business Internship Placement), and BUS477-CD/CEL (Family Business International Immersion).

Reference Links

• “Gellert Family Business Center,” Gellert Family Business Center website
• “Courses,” Gellert Family Business Center website
• “Gellert Family Business Center,” USF School of Management website