Family dynamics are complicated — even without hundreds of millions of dollars on the table.
One of the first families that Josh Gentine (MBA ’13) worked with as a consultant who was at a breaking point. There was no question that their business was successful; it was nearing $1 billion in revenue when they first reached out to Gentine.
Their biggest issue was the strained relationships between family members. Those dynamics became so complicated that they were close to splitting up the company or selling it.
“There is no question that in a family business, their business, governance and estate planning are easier when the family has great culture, good communication and mutual respect,” says Gentine. “It’s the human side of it all that’s the most complex as well as the most compelling to me.”
Gentine spent months working with the family to understand their business and estate plans, explore their personalities and interpersonal relationships, and facilitate family workshops. After helping them develop a deeper understanding of each other, they began having more substantive conversations about their business and perhaps more importantly, their family.
They also identified that they did, in fact, want to unify as a family and run their business together.
“I just love helping people on their journey,” says Gentine. “I often joke that I get to help build better families, but I use their balance sheet as a way in.”
Gentine is uniquely qualified for his work. He’s a third-generation member of the family that started Sargento Foods Inc., a consistent top seller and innovator in the cheese industry for more than 70 years. The company’s annual sales are around $1.7 billion.
His grandfather, Leonard, founded the company in 1953, and his uncle, Louis, served as CEO through the 1980s and 1990s. His cousin, Louis Gentine II, is now chairman and CEO.
Gentine chose a different path, working with families across the U.S. through his company Bench Consulting. While reviewing complexities of a client’s business and estate plan are always part of his work, his consultations often focus more on the interpersonal dynamics between family members and helping them truly understand one another. That’s key to multigenerational ownership and success, he says.
A genuine emotional investment alongside a financial investment is needed to be a truly successful family business.
That’s the message he brings back to UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School when he speaks with students taking courses through the Family Enterprise Center – classes he took while in the Full-Time MBA Program. The center prepares the next generation of business leaders to work in their family’s business or for another family business.
“One reason I do the work I do is because I believe family businesses are the lifeblood of America,” he says. “If we can keep more family businesses operating as family businesses, it’s great for society. It’s great for employees. It’s great for communities.”
Gentine’s business education began early. As a child, he went to work with his dad, Lee, who oversaw Sargento’s retail business and marketing, and played hide and seek in the factory. He loved it, but as he grew older, he felt the intense pressure and expectations that commonly come with being a part of a successful family business.
His father wanted one of his children to go into Sargento, and Gentine’s identical twin brother and his sister had gone into teaching. He worried about disappointing his family if he wanted to have a life that didn’t revolve around Sargento.
At first, none of the paths he considered included Sargento. Though he went to the University of Notre Dame to study finance as an undergraduate – he was also a walk-on backup punter on its storied football team – he long had been interested in becoming a priest.
When his parents divorced during his senior year of college, his life’s path felt even more undefined. He worked on Capitol Hill one summer. He taught in the Galapagos, volunteered in Tanzania and worked for the United Way in Milwaukee.
He then explored the business world. He founded Press Cocktail Soda, then sold his stake to start a confectionary company.
Still, something was missing. After initially being denied acceptance into Notre Dame Seminary (he had been dating, so they asked him to wait a year), he decided to enroll at UNC Kenan-Flagler.
“It was crossing things off a list, trying to discern where I was being called in life,” he says. “I felt an immense amount of pressure to go back to Sargento. When I was saying yes to the seminary, I was also saying no to the family business. And that was saying no to my dad.”
Gentine speaks at the 2024 Family Business Forum with Family Enterprise Center co-founder Cooper Biersach
Eventually, his MBA studies became less of a placeholder and more of a motivator. At Carolina, he immediately loved consulting after taking his first class. He also found camaraderie and support among classmates who are also part of family businesses.
“I came in with a lot of lived experience in business, but it was talking with my peers about their experiences that opened up my lens of how to be a part of a family business on your own terms,” he says. “It made me realize that I wasn’t alone in many ways. I felt like I was on an island for many, many years. And then I was sitting in a room with people who were in the same position I was. That was invaluable. The MBA environment at Carolina teaches you a lot about yourself. And one of the most important things needed for great family dynamics and great family businesses is self-awareness.”
After completing his MBA, Gentine was admitted to the seminary but left after a year.
He decided to tap into his talent for consulting by joining Deloitte, where he focused on mergers and acquisitions. In 2017, he launched Bench Consulting and the following year joined Sargento’s board of directors.
Serving the Sargento board of directors allows him to contribute meaningfully to the family business without day-to-day demands. While he still travels frequently for work, he runs Bench Consulting from Charlottesville, Virginia.
“It’s the best of both worlds,” he says. “Deloitte made me realize that as much as I love consulting work, the reason I went to the seminary and everything else I pursued was because of my love of helping people navigate their lives. And when I began consulting with family businesses, it was like the light bulb went on. This is the work for me.”