Michael Preston

Professor Michael Preston has over 40 years experience working closely with and advising corporate executives of middle market companies, including family-owned businesses and non-profit organizations. His areas of expertise include leadership, management, strategic planning, organizational structure, and change management. For the past 15 years, Professor Preston has been teaching and consulting with growing companies including family businesses.He is also currently the Faculty Advisor to the Family Business Club which has 94 members.

He teaches a popular course at Columbia Business School called Managing the Growing Company, which primarily focuses on the transitional issues a growing midsize company goes through as an entrepreneurial venture to a professionally managed business. His complementary course, Family Business Management, addresses the many unique issues and challenges facing family businesses today.In addition to Managing the Growing Company and Family Business Management Professor Preston has taught courses about managing family businesses in Europe and South America.

Preston is also an active member of the School's Entrepreneurship Program serving as a mentor and Sounding Board practitioner to Columbia student entrepreneurs. He also established a Family Business Network at the School providing a forum for Columbia students, alumni, and the wider community to come together to discuss unique issues such as succession, governance, and sibling rivalry. During his 28 years at Grant Thornton LLP, he assisted businesses as a management consultant, regional director, partner, and consulting department head of the firm's largest practice. Some of his major clients include IBM, Lloyds of London, Citigroup, Motorola, AT&T, and GTE/Sylvania.

He co-authored The Road to Success: How to Manage Growth (John Wiley & Sons, 1998) and speaks to various audiences on topics related to management and organizational growth. Preston is on the board of FEGS Health and Human Services System and is a member of the Family Firm Institute [FFI]. He holds an MBA from the Leonard N. Stern Graduate School of Business at NYU and a BA from Ithaca College.