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V O L . X X V I I N O. X I I I J U N E 2 8 , 2 0 2 1 16 FA M I LY - OW N E D B U S I N E S S G eiger President and CEO Jo-an Lantz has been with the company so long, at times she's mistaken as a member of the family that owns it. "People assume that I'm a Geiger, but I'm not," she says. "Sometimes it allows me the opportunity to be outspoken, and other times like anyone else I have to allow family dynamics to work itself out," she says two years after succeeding Gene Geiger at the helm. As the first non-relative in four generations to lead the Lewiston-based promotional products company, Lantz is one of several Maine business leaders entrusted by family business owners to run their firm. at often means piloting the enterprise until the next generation is ready to step up. Lantz, who worked her way up from an entry-level bookkeeping job after col- lege to her current role, became president in June 2018 and CEO in early 2019. Today she leads a company with 375 employees, including 75 in the United Kingdom, and works closely with her predecessor, who chairs Geiger's board. "Our management styles are certainly complementary, and we con- tinue to be a collaborative team," she says. at extends to Gene's younger brother, Peter, board vice chair and editor of the Farmer's Almanac, and Gene's son, David, who serves as gen- eral counsel. In Maine, where family-owned firms make up 80% of all businesses, Lantz's management philosophy P H O T O / T I M G R E E N WAY F O C U S The opportunity to work with an ownership team who has a long-term outlook and the willingness to invest in the future makes it rewarding. — Gary Merrill Hussey Seating Co. Jo-an Lantz, president and CEO of Lewiston-based promotional products company Geiger, works closely with her predecessor, board Chairman Gene Geiger, center, and his brother, Peter Geiger, the board's vice chair. of FAMILY BUSINESS STEWARDS reflects the unique role and vantage point of non-relatives in the C-suite. Leading firms in a variety of sec- tors, they navigate many of the same challenges unique to family-owned enterprises. Other large firms led by outsiders include L.L.Bean, on its second non-family CEO since 2016 in Stephen Smith, whom Lantz con- siders a mentor; Hancock Lumber, a sixth-generation firm, led by Chairman and CEO Kevin Hancock, that hired Paul Wainman as CFO in 2016 and promoted him to president last year; and North Berwick-based Hussey Seating Co., led by President and CEO Gary Merrill, the first non- family member in that role. Why so many examples in Maine? Catherine Wygant Fossett, execu- tive director of the Portland-based Institute for Family-Owned Business, points to practical reasons. "I have often heard that 'you don't want to be the one to end the family business,'" she says, "so in keeping with current business practices, family businesses are more open to coaching, having an advisory board and bring- ing in outside talent to keep the stew- ardship alive and the company strong for generations to come." Non-relatives leading Maine family firms reflect on unique challenges B y R e n e e C o r d e s

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