Through personal stories and expert reflections, listeners gain practical wisdom and inspiration to lead with impact, create cultures that connect stakeholders, navigate challenges unique to family business, and carry forward the legacy of their family business.
Cameron Young, a fourth-generation leader at Behler Young, shares lessons on resilience, leadership, and culture behind his family’s nearly 100-year-old HVAC distribution business. He reflects on how strong family dynamics, adaptability, and a commitment to integrity have sustained long-term success. Cameron also opens up about overcoming a life-changing spinal cord injury in college, drawing parallels to his father’s leadership during the 2008 financial crisis.
His story highlights the importance of vulnerability, intentional succession planning, and shifting from individual dependency to building empowered teams. He emphasizes keeping founding stories relevant for today’s workforce and investing in internal culture through leadership development, community involvement, and shared values, creating an environment where people perform at their best and drive lasting business growth.
Key Themes
Generational Resilience and Adaptability
Vulnerable Leadership
Modernizing the Legacy
Intentional Succession Development
Culture as a Performance Driver
Timestamps:
02:32 – Company growth and branch network expansion across Michigan
05:00 – Third generation, Doug Young, joins and leads the business
08:10 – Culture, honesty, and integrity as keys to 100-year longevity
12:27 – Spinal cord injury while studying abroad in Spain
15:21 – Mindset and recovery after the injury
21:50 – Great Recession impact on the business and parallel family hardships
25:32 – Resilience lessons from navigating both crises simultaneously
29:51 – Career at Steelcase and transition into the workforce post-injury
33:21 – Management training program and roles within Behler Young
36:04 – Behler Young MBA leadership development program for the fourth generation
42:33 – Community giving through the BY Cares program
52:52 – Cameron’s personal legacy and what he hopes to model for others
Additional Resources:
Connect with Cameron on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cameron-young-94ba6612/
Connect with Marshall on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marshall-lockton-26369a1/
Follow PeopleForward Network on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/peopleforward-network/posts/?feedView=all
Learn more about PeopleForward Network: https://peopleforwardnetwork.com/
Marshall Lockton
The Third Layer is a podcast crafted for family-owned business owners and leaders who truly understand the intricacies of navigating a business where family and leadership intersect. Hosted by Marshall Lockton, who has lived the family owned business experience from various leadership viewpoints, guests share what they’ve learned about what makes family business leaders uniquely able to lead with culture. The podcast zeroes in on the greatest leadership lessons about culture learned throughout the career of a seasoned family business leader. We uncover how that one pivotal insight transformed them and influenced everything they do. We go beyond the first layer, and ask the leader to help the audience really understand why the lesson was so important to them and how it applies to different facets of their business(es) and life. Through personal stories and expert reflections, listeners gain practical wisdom and inspiration to lead with impact, create cultures that connect stakeholders, navigate challenges unique to family business, and carry forward the legacy of their family business.