About

The University of San Francisco’s Gellert Family Business Center is the go-to resource hub for family-owned companies in the San Francisco Bay Area.

We help families-in-business with their transition needs and support their long-term success with practical family and business resources, information and networking opportunities, and access to our partners, while we concurrently advance the field of family business research, education, and scholarship.

How We Proactively Serve the Greater Bay Area

We recognize excellence.

The Gellert Family Business Center recognizes two family-owned businesses every year, provides support and resources to strengthen their operations and promotes these businesses throughout the Bay Area.

We keep family-owned businesses informed and connected.

The Center provides family-owned businesses with access to strategic and practical family business information, networking opportunities, and family business research, education and scholarship. We conduct family business research to identify and improve potential areas for growth. Through luncheons, dinners and related events, we look to connect family-owned businesses with one another and create a knowledge base that will aid in enhancing the “family side” of business.

We advance the development of family business leadership.

The Center promotes successful next-generation leadership and provides students with the opportunity to apply related coursework within local family businesses. The University of San Francisco ensures that family business coursework is offered throughout the school year through three entrepreneurship courses including BUS378 (Family Business Theory and Practice); BUS474 (Practicum in Family Business); and BUS477-CEL/CD (Family Business Immersion). The Center also offers the NextGen Business Initiative (NGBI) certificate program to assist families-in-business with transition/succession issues.

What Drives Us

The goals of the University of San Francisco's Gellert Family Business Center are to:

Provide family-owned businesses with access to networking

Create an open exchange of strategic and practical family business information

Advance the field of family business research, education, and scholarship

The Carl Gellert and Celia Berta Gellert Foundation’s policy was to promote educational, scientific, literacy, or religious programs in the nine counties of the greater San Francisco Bay Area. The Gellert Foundation was the founding sponsor of the USF Gellert Family Business Center.

Our Advisory Board

Monika Hudson

Associate Professor, University of San Francisco, School of Management
Director, Gellert Family Business Resources Center

Luis Agurto Jr.

CEO
Pestec

Aaron Barulich

President
BiRite Foodservice Distributors

Jerry Becerra

President
Heffernan Barbary Insurance Services, LLC.

Andreas Denklemann

Certified EOS Implementer®
Fifth Ascent LLC

Erika Evearitt

Chief Development Officer
Silicon Valley Education Foundation

Arthur Hindman

Principal
Sexton International

Gwen Kaplan

Owner
Ace Mailing SF

Tony Patino

Professor of Marketing
University of San Francisco

Gabriela Sapp

Co-Founder
Equitable Growth Solutions Inc

Ed Hart

Director, Center for Family-Owned Businesses
First Bank

Gellert Fellows

Jacqueline Bouvier Copeland

The WISE Fund
“Philanthropy”

Sean Hutchinson

RFN Group
“Valuation and Exit Planning”

Sara B. Stern

Certified EOS Implementer,
Family Business Expert

Paul Terry

Paul Terry & Associates
“Human Element”

Subscribe for exclusive

Family Business

NEWS & RESOURCES

We’ll send you the latest family business guides and resources, upcoming events and networking opportunities, family business news, and updates from the center.