Table Talk with ABFI

Connecting the Dots: Tom McCollough's Northwood Family Office

What do you do when you're wealthy, surrounded by specialists, but still can't get a straight answer to what your family should actually do? That frustration sparked one of Canada's most influential wealth management stories. In Episode 23 of ABFI Table Talk, host Matt Knight sits down with Tom McCollough, founder and chair of Northwood Family Office, author of three books on wealth, and often called "the godfather of family offices in Canada." After 20 years at RBC, Tom left in 2003 to build something he couldn't find as a consumer: an integrated advisor for his own family's wealth. Twenty-three years later, Northwood serves more than 100 families across the country and has effectively built the multi-family office profession in Canada. The conversation unpacks why vertical specialists — accountants, lawyers, investment managers — solve vertical problems but leave families without anyone connecting the dots. Tom lays out his "general contractor" model for integrated wealth, explains why goals should drive investments (not the other way around), and shares why he proactively stepped back from the CEO role to let Northwood's next generation lead.  This episode matters for any family navigating wealth, succession, or the search for trusted advice. Tom offers frameworks Canadian business families and advisors can put to work tomorrow and a candid look at how the family office landscape is changing and where it's headed next. Tune in to hear how one frustrated consumer kickstarted an industry in Canada, and what that means for your family. Learn more about ABFI at https://abfi.ca/ [https://abfi.ca/], connect with Matt Knight at matt.knight@ualberta.ca [matt.knight@ualberta.ca] or on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/mattknight/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/mattknight/]. Learn more about Northwood Family Office at https://www.northwoodfamilyoffice.com/ [https://www.northwoodfamilyoffice.com/]. This video podcast series is proudly produced by the team at Road 55 - located in Edmonton, Alberta. For more information, please visit: www.road55.ca [http://www.road55.ca/]

Buying the Big Fish: Ted and Sean LeLacheur on Risk, Legacy, and Four Generations

Ted and Sean LeLacheur join Matt Knight for a rare father-and-son conversation about leading a fourth-generation family business that has been moving Canadians across western Canada since 1906. Ted shares the story of restarting Western Moving from an empty warehouse in 1995 and the relationships that helped rebuild the company from scratch. Sean reflects on leaving to try his own ventures before returning to the business and eventually leading the acquisition of a competitor three times their size. Together they discuss generational leadership, navigating risk differently across eras, the evolving role of technology and AI in logistics, and why the moving industry will always remain a people business. This episode is a candid look at succession, entrepreneurship, and what it takes for each generation to reimagine a family enterprise while staying true to the values that built it. Learn more about ABFI at ww.abfi.ca [http://ww.abfi.ca/], connect with Matt Knight at matt.knight@ualberta.ca [matt.knight@ualberta.ca] or LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/mattknight [https://www.linkedin.com/in/mattknight] This video podcast series is proudly produced by the team at Road 55 - located in Edmonton, Alberta. For more information, please visit: www.road55.ca [http://www.road55.ca/]

Learning from Beau's Brewery: Steve Beauchesne on Family Business and Peer Groups

He quit his job, sold his house, and moved his young family into his parents' home to build a brewery with his dad. Beau's All Natural Brewing became one of Canada's most recognized craft beer brands — and then Steve Beauchesne and his father had to sell it. Steve joins Matt Knight for a candid conversation about what it really takes to build a business with family: the governance lessons, the employee ownership plan that backfired, and the convergence of financial strain and personal tragedy that led to the sale. He also shares why those hard-won experiences now shape his work as CEO of Family Enterprise Canada and why peer groups may be the most important investment any family in business can make. Learn more about ABFI at ww.abfi.ca [http://ww.abfi.ca/], connect with Matt Knight at matt.knight@ualberta.ca [matt.knight@ualberta.ca] or LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/mattknight [https://www.linkedin.com/in/mattknight] This video podcast series is proudly produced by the team at Road 55 - located in Edmonton, Alberta. For more information, please visit: www.road55.ca [http://www.road55.ca/]

Shawn Kanungo - AI Agents Are Here: How Leaders Should Think Bigger Now

Innovation strategist and keynote speaker Shawn Kanungo joins Matt Knight for a candid conversation on disruption, succession, and what the AI era means for business families. Shawn shares the personal story of stepping into his late father’s accounting practice during tax season and the lessons it taught him about systems, continuity, and why succession planning matters before you think you need it.  From there, the conversation moves into the “AI paradox” in family enterprise, why trust and legacy may become the strongest moat left, and how AI agents are shifting work from planning and decks to real execution.  If you want a clear-eyed, practical, and motivating take on how leaders can use this moment to think bolder and move faster without losing their humanity, this episode is for you. Learn more about ABFI at ww.abfi.ca [http://ww.abfi.ca/], connect with Matt Knight at matt.knight@ualberta.ca [matt.knight@ualberta.ca] or LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/mattknight [https://www.linkedin.com/in/mattknight] Learn more about Shawn Kanungo at https://shawnkanungo.com/ [https://shawnkanungo.com/] This video podcast series is proudly produced by the team at Road 55 - located in Edmonton, Alberta. For more information, please visit: www.road55.ca [http://www.road55.ca/]

Radical Love in Business: Sean Schoenberger’s Sunco Communications Journey from Cable Puller to President

What began around a kitchen table in 2000 is now a national integrator keeping 16,000 Canadian businesses online, secure, and talking. In this Table Talk episode, host Matt Knight sits down with Sean Schoenberger, President (and former summer-student cable-runner) of Sunco Communications & Installations, to unpack a 25-year growth story powered by technology, family, and “radical love.” Sean traces Sunco’s evolution from pulling wire in local ceilings to delivering SD-WAN, SASE, cloud voice, and managed IT coast-to-coast. He credits two turning points: adopting the Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS) in 2017 and embracing strategic acquisitions, moves that helped Sunco leap from a small crew to a 70-person, multi-city team. Sean also reflects on partnership dynamics with CEO (and cousin) Mike Schoenberger, and why clear boundaries protect both family chemistry and business momentum. Key insights include: * Leadership – shifting from a “hard-D” DISC profile to collaborative, idea-driven management. * Culture – embedding “radical love” so every employee feels like family, even across provinces. * Technology – why VoIP’s rise rivals today’s AI wave, and how Sunco pilots new tools on itself before clients. For family-business leaders, Sean’s story offers a blueprint for balancing growth, governance, and kinship while remembering that telecom’s real job is to let customers forget it’s there. Listen in for practical takeaways on acquisitions, next-gen grooming, and setting “work stays at work” rules that stick. Time | Topic 0:00 | Intro – The “sound you never see”: making business communications seamless. 2:20 | Decoding telecom jargon – Sean explains SaaS, SD-WAN, SASE in plain English. 5:45 | Sunco origin story – founded by uncle & cousin; Sean’s first cables at age 14. 10:30 | From cabling to sales – deciding ceilings weren’t the long-term future. 12:50 | The EOS “hockey-stick” – implementing Entrepreneurial Operating System (2017). 18:00 | Leadership wake-up – shifting from “hard-D” directive style to idea-driven team. 24:20 | Radical Love culture – open-door policy, Thursday “30 Minutes with Mike,” and volunteer days. 28:45 | Tech shifts – pagers to smartphones, VoIP to AI; why experimentation starts in-house. 34:10 | Acquisition strategy – Isosceles (2022) & Zayo PBX (2024) to enter new markets fast. 39:30 | Work-family boundaries – strict 8–5 rule, unplugging at the lake, keeping weekends clean. 44:15 | Grooming next-gen leaders – empowering employees, planning beyond current ownership. 48:30 | Rapid-fire advice – set business hours, embrace collaboration, lead with heart. Learn more about ABFI at ww.abfi.ca [https://abfi.ca/], connect with Matt Knight at matt.knight@ualberta.ca [matt.knight@ualberta.ca] or LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/mattknight [https://www.linkedin.com/in/mattknight/]Learn more about Sunco Communications at www.sunco.ca [http://www.sunco.ca/] This video podcast series is proudly produced by the team at Road 55 - located in Edmonton, Alberta. For more information, please visit: www.road55.ca [https://road55.ca/]