Individual and Family Attributes Related to Succession Planning

Abstract

Management change is a decisive factor for the longevity of family organizations. In this article, we seek to understand the connections between individual and family attributes and succession planning in family businesses. The literature provided us with support for the elaboration of research hypotheses, which we tested in a sample composed of 264 Brazilian family companies. The analysis of the data, through the Structural Equation Modeling with estimation by the method of Partial Least Squares, allowed us to confirm five of the hypotheses formulated. The results demonstrate that some attributes of the successor and the prior knowledge of the business of the possible successor are positively related to the planning of the succession process. As a contribution, the article provides a better understanding of family organizations, mainly contemplating the relationships between: family and business; and successor and predecessor, variables that impact the succession planning level in different ways.