MNE3704 Assignment
2 (100% COMPLETE
ANSWERS) Semester 1
2025 - DUE 31 March
2025
NO PLAGIARISM
[Pick the date]
, Book
Family Business Management
Family Business Management - MNE3704 Assignment 2 Semester 1 2025 -
DUE 31 March 2025 ;100 % TRUSTED workings, Expert Solved, Explanations
and Solutions. CASE STUDY:
THE MURDOCH DYNASTY Rupert Murdoch inherited a modest media business
from his father, Keith, but the impact of death duties and taxes left him
nothing but a loss-making newspaper in Adelaide, Australia. He has
transformed this into the world’s largest media empire. His primary interest,
New Corporation, has assets of $56 billion and sales $23 billion in films,
newspaper and publishing around the world. But according to some reports,
the problem of succession is threatening to destabilize his business. Rupert's
public favour of his children over professional management has sent a clear
signal to ambitious employees and investors alike. This is a family company,
family gets priority, and everyone else's interests will always be second.
Rupert Murdoch has six children from three marriages, including Elizabeth,
Lachlan and James from his marriage to Ann, which ended in divorce in 1999.
Lachlan, who managed the New York Post and the Fox television service, was
initially the favourite to head the family business. But in recent years, first
Elizabeth and then James have emerged as contenders for the succession.
Lachlan, a London-born American citizen was sent to Australia in 1994,
where he was chairman and chief executive of News Ltd, the Australian arm
of News Corp. He was deputy chief executive officer on the main board of
News Corporation, a role that extended his reach well outside of Australia
and into the company’s worldwide interests, but he abruptly resigned this
post in August 2005. The family denied that he quit because of a rift with his
father. Lachlan’s elder sister, Elizabeth, came into reckoning when she was
given a senior job at BskyB, Murdoch’s UK satellite television company. This
was a controversial appointment as she had less than two years’
management experience and was described as a ‘trainee’ by the chief
executive (who left soon after making the comment). Elizabeth now seems
intent on making own way as she left Sky to set her own film production
business, Shine Entertainment. James worked his way up through the
company’s new media and newspaper interests in New York, before moving
to Hong Kong to take charge of News Corporation’s ailing Asian satellite
service StarTV. Having turned this around, he was given the executive’s role
at BskyB in 2003. Promoted to take charge of the NewsCorp business in
Europe and Asia in 2007, he is now the bookies’ favourite to take over when
Rupert goes. But one should not forget Murdoch’s elder daughter, Prudence
, MacLeod, who does not have job in News Corp herself but she has declared
that her oldest son, teenager James MacLeod, is a lot like his famous
grandfather and may also want to take over the world one day. Fortunately,
News Corp is large enough to give them all interesting employment should
they need it. It had been thought that James Murdoch, the third child born to
Rupert’s second wife, was most likely to inherit the empire. That was before
he became embroiled in the phone-hacking scandal at the News of the
World. In a concession to shareholders, parliamentary inquisitors and anyone
else troubled by the behaviour of Murdoch’s British newspapers, it was
revealed that James has resigned from the boards of The Times of London
and The Sun. Although he remains executive chairman of News International,
the News Corp. subsidiary that publishes the company’s British newspapers,
the decision to distance himself from the papers, however marginally, is the
latest blow to James’s prospects of ever running News Corp. The heir’s future
looks bleaker than seemed possible just six months ago. Shareholders have
already turned against James. If it weren’t for the family vote, he would have
been removed from the News Corp board. At one point or another, each of
Murdoch’s children has appeared to be the chosen one. Each has known
favour, being sent off to distant corners of the empire to govern far-off
provinces with a view to preparing them for life back at the centre of the
imperial court. Each has endured spells in the wilderness, shunned by their
father and forced into exile.James helped found a record label, later bought
by News Corp., before running Star TV in Asia and then BSkyB, Murdoch’s
lucrative British satellite TV operation. Four years ago he became viceroy of
News Corp.’s holdings in Europe, the Middle East, and Asia. That seemed to
make him favourite to inherit, but that was before the meltdown at the News
of the World. As James’s prospects dimmed, so the price of Elisabeth
Murdoch’s future began to rise. Earlier this year, Rupert signalled it was time
for Elisabeth, age 42, to come in from the cold. Purchasing her television
company, Shine, for $675 million was an expensive way of signalling
parental approval, but it marked her return to favour after a decade in exile.
Previously she had run BSkyB until she resigned in 2000. To add spice to the
melodrama, she reportedly blames James for his failure to get a grip on the
London papers. Her little brother has embarrassed the family and must pay.
Meanwhile, on the far side of the world in Australia, Lachlan Murdoch is also
facing difficulties, amid allegations that one of News Corp.’s subsidiaries
once tried to bribe an Australian politician. Like his brother James, Lachlan’s
presence on the News Corp. board was rejected by nearly 70 percent of
independent shareholders. Lachlan had long considered the likeliest to
succeed his father, but he left in 2005 after a series of clashes with Roger
Ailes and other senior executives at Fox TV. Lachlan retreated to Australia,
where the Murdoch adventure first began. He is currently acting CEO of TV
Company Ten Network Holdings; he has seen the company share price drop
40 percent since he took over. Question 1 1. According to the systems-
theory perspective of family-owned businesses, suboptimisation of the
family-ownership-management system occurs when family members have a
2 (100% COMPLETE
ANSWERS) Semester 1
2025 - DUE 31 March
2025
NO PLAGIARISM
[Pick the date]
, Book
Family Business Management
Family Business Management - MNE3704 Assignment 2 Semester 1 2025 -
DUE 31 March 2025 ;100 % TRUSTED workings, Expert Solved, Explanations
and Solutions. CASE STUDY:
THE MURDOCH DYNASTY Rupert Murdoch inherited a modest media business
from his father, Keith, but the impact of death duties and taxes left him
nothing but a loss-making newspaper in Adelaide, Australia. He has
transformed this into the world’s largest media empire. His primary interest,
New Corporation, has assets of $56 billion and sales $23 billion in films,
newspaper and publishing around the world. But according to some reports,
the problem of succession is threatening to destabilize his business. Rupert's
public favour of his children over professional management has sent a clear
signal to ambitious employees and investors alike. This is a family company,
family gets priority, and everyone else's interests will always be second.
Rupert Murdoch has six children from three marriages, including Elizabeth,
Lachlan and James from his marriage to Ann, which ended in divorce in 1999.
Lachlan, who managed the New York Post and the Fox television service, was
initially the favourite to head the family business. But in recent years, first
Elizabeth and then James have emerged as contenders for the succession.
Lachlan, a London-born American citizen was sent to Australia in 1994,
where he was chairman and chief executive of News Ltd, the Australian arm
of News Corp. He was deputy chief executive officer on the main board of
News Corporation, a role that extended his reach well outside of Australia
and into the company’s worldwide interests, but he abruptly resigned this
post in August 2005. The family denied that he quit because of a rift with his
father. Lachlan’s elder sister, Elizabeth, came into reckoning when she was
given a senior job at BskyB, Murdoch’s UK satellite television company. This
was a controversial appointment as she had less than two years’
management experience and was described as a ‘trainee’ by the chief
executive (who left soon after making the comment). Elizabeth now seems
intent on making own way as she left Sky to set her own film production
business, Shine Entertainment. James worked his way up through the
company’s new media and newspaper interests in New York, before moving
to Hong Kong to take charge of News Corporation’s ailing Asian satellite
service StarTV. Having turned this around, he was given the executive’s role
at BskyB in 2003. Promoted to take charge of the NewsCorp business in
Europe and Asia in 2007, he is now the bookies’ favourite to take over when
Rupert goes. But one should not forget Murdoch’s elder daughter, Prudence
, MacLeod, who does not have job in News Corp herself but she has declared
that her oldest son, teenager James MacLeod, is a lot like his famous
grandfather and may also want to take over the world one day. Fortunately,
News Corp is large enough to give them all interesting employment should
they need it. It had been thought that James Murdoch, the third child born to
Rupert’s second wife, was most likely to inherit the empire. That was before
he became embroiled in the phone-hacking scandal at the News of the
World. In a concession to shareholders, parliamentary inquisitors and anyone
else troubled by the behaviour of Murdoch’s British newspapers, it was
revealed that James has resigned from the boards of The Times of London
and The Sun. Although he remains executive chairman of News International,
the News Corp. subsidiary that publishes the company’s British newspapers,
the decision to distance himself from the papers, however marginally, is the
latest blow to James’s prospects of ever running News Corp. The heir’s future
looks bleaker than seemed possible just six months ago. Shareholders have
already turned against James. If it weren’t for the family vote, he would have
been removed from the News Corp board. At one point or another, each of
Murdoch’s children has appeared to be the chosen one. Each has known
favour, being sent off to distant corners of the empire to govern far-off
provinces with a view to preparing them for life back at the centre of the
imperial court. Each has endured spells in the wilderness, shunned by their
father and forced into exile.James helped found a record label, later bought
by News Corp., before running Star TV in Asia and then BSkyB, Murdoch’s
lucrative British satellite TV operation. Four years ago he became viceroy of
News Corp.’s holdings in Europe, the Middle East, and Asia. That seemed to
make him favourite to inherit, but that was before the meltdown at the News
of the World. As James’s prospects dimmed, so the price of Elisabeth
Murdoch’s future began to rise. Earlier this year, Rupert signalled it was time
for Elisabeth, age 42, to come in from the cold. Purchasing her television
company, Shine, for $675 million was an expensive way of signalling
parental approval, but it marked her return to favour after a decade in exile.
Previously she had run BSkyB until she resigned in 2000. To add spice to the
melodrama, she reportedly blames James for his failure to get a grip on the
London papers. Her little brother has embarrassed the family and must pay.
Meanwhile, on the far side of the world in Australia, Lachlan Murdoch is also
facing difficulties, amid allegations that one of News Corp.’s subsidiaries
once tried to bribe an Australian politician. Like his brother James, Lachlan’s
presence on the News Corp. board was rejected by nearly 70 percent of
independent shareholders. Lachlan had long considered the likeliest to
succeed his father, but he left in 2005 after a series of clashes with Roger
Ailes and other senior executives at Fox TV. Lachlan retreated to Australia,
where the Murdoch adventure first began. He is currently acting CEO of TV
Company Ten Network Holdings; he has seen the company share price drop
40 percent since he took over. Question 1 1. According to the systems-
theory perspective of family-owned businesses, suboptimisation of the
family-ownership-management system occurs when family members have a
