Joe and Jenn Wheeling

Joe and Jenn met at Colorado State University and have been married for 37 years. We have raised two dynamic daughters, an attorney and a CPA, both living on the East Coast. Joe has his MBA from The Wharton School of Business and worked in the corporate hospitality business until he retired in 2009 as the CEO of Red Roof Inns. During Joe’s corporate career, Jenn homeschooled our daughters and started the organic farm we still nurture to this day. After Joe’s retirement, we partnered with Jenn’s parents in James Ranch Beef while still running the farm and giving ranch tours.
During Joe’s corporate time, he participated in a few meetings. It was during this time that he was exposed to the Delegated Meeting Process created by Alain Cardon. After realizing its effectiveness, Joe knew he had to bring the process home to the James family.
As a multigenerational ranch family who hold their businesses independently while managing the 400 acre ranch by consensus, meetings are vital to our success. Before DMP, our quarterly meetings were day long affairs where the dominant dominated, the reserved stayed quiet and oodles of side conversations throttled decisions. Factor in small children and their schedules and our meetings were frustrating wastes of time and energy.
Once we learned of and adopted DMP, we embraced structure and responsibility while encouraging personal development and streamlined decision making. Now, our meetings are productive and fulfilling each and every time.

To learn more about how the James family is running multiple businesses effectively, read their recent blog post with HMI.

Plenary

Adapting and Innovating through the Lumps and Bumps of a Complex Family Business

We will share the adaptations and innovations we have employed on the James Ranch to allow several generations to live and work together on the same piece of land while sharing the common goal of responsible stewardship. We will talk about how we updated our 30 year old Holistic goal to reflect the second and third generation’s involvement in the ranch as well as our creation of a governing body for the ranch. In the midst of all of this, we will be highlighting the importance of family meetings and the Delegated Meeting Process which is designed to achieve a maximally effective meeting while empowering the participant’s individual growth and confidence.