Economic Outlook for Family-Owned Businesses

Start the New Year with Clarity and Confidence.

As a family-owned business, your decisions today impact not only your bottom line, but your legacy, your people, and the next generation.

Join us for an exclusive economic outlook session featuring Scott Colbert, Executive Vice President, Chief Economist, and Director of Fixed Income Management at Commerce Trust Company. Scott will unpack current economic trends and translate them into meaningful implications for family enterprises navigating growth, transfer of ownership, capital planning, or operational stability.

You’ll gain key insights on how the economic landscape may affect core aspects of your family business:

✅ Interest Rates – What shifting borrowing costs mean for financing expansions, ownership transitions, or recapitalization.
✅ Tariffs & Trade Dynamics – Understanding global impacts on supply chains, sourcing, and competitive positioning.
✅ Inflation Trends – How pricing pressures impact margins, generational expectations, and customer stability.
✅ Employment Outlook – Talent retention, rising labor costs, and workforce planning for multi-generational cultures.
✅ Market Conditions – How market performance may influence investments, liquidity strategies, and diversification.

Whether you're planning for growth, managing risk, or simply seeking to make informed decisions in the year ahead, this session will provide valuable context and actionable insights.

About the Speaker

Scott M. Colbert brings over 30 years of experience in economic analysis and investment management. He leads Commerce Trust's Fixed Income Group, managing more than $24 billion in assets, and is one of the longest-tenured 4/5-Star ranked bond fund managers in the country. Under his leadership, the group has twice earned the Lipper Fund Award for Best Overall Fixed Income Small Fund Group in the U.S.

Scott holds a B.S. in Nuclear Engineering from the University of Cincinnati and an MBA from Xavier University. A Chartered Financial Analyst, he has served as both Director and President of the CFA Society of St. Louis.