Born into a business family in Poland and growing up in Germany, Peter wanted to understand why succession failed in his family's business. This led him to pursue his doctoral studies at the European Business School (EBS), as well as studies at INSEAD in Fontainebleau and IESE Business School in Barcelona. Today, he is a full professor at the Telfer School of Management, where he founded the Family Enterprise Legacy Institute (FELI).

Peter has been a visiting professor at IMD, INSEAD, Zhejiang University, Sorbonne Business School, Université de Nanterre, and King's College. His academic work on family dynamics, family governance, shareholder agreements, the preparation of the rising owner generation, and family business boards is considered among the most influential in the field, and has been shared at leading practitioner conferences such as the FBN Global Summit, the STEP Global Symposium, and the FFI Global Summit, and in leading media such as the Harvard Business Review, Wall Street Journal, the Globe & Mail, and The Conversation.

His 2021 book, Enabling Next Generation Legacies, co-authored with Sabine Rau, is a leading resource for global business families.