Lessons From <em>Succession</em> for Non-billionaire Families

In Succession, HBO’s dark comedy about the heirs to a family media empire, characters exchange artisanal insults and wear bespoke suits like armor. The ultra-wealthy Roys are constantly at war with their corporate competitors, and with one another. They squabble over money, clout, and who gets to inherit leadership of the conglomerate Waystar Royco from the patriarch, Logan Roy (played by Brian Cox). Yet their deepest wounds—an overlooked son craving his father’s approval, a sibling in need of a hug—tend to originate from their family history.

This contrast makes a compelling case study for Kimberly Eddleston, a Northeastern University entrepreneurship professor who uses the show, along with works such as , , and , in her teaching on, Eddleston told me, is a cautionary tale.