Family Business Values Research Articles

Transmission of entrepreneurial values in enterprising families: a systematic literature review

PurposeThe purpose of this article is to systematically review existing literature concerning the transmission of entrepreneurial values within the context of family entrepreneurship. Specifically, the study aims to address two primary inquiries: First, which entrepreneurial values transferred across generations have been discerned in family entrepreneurship literature? Second, what mechanisms for the transmission of these values have been identified within family entrepreneurship literature?Design/methodology/approachWe utilized the Web of Science database to identify relevant articles. We employed a broad set of Boolean search terms related to family, entrepreneurship and values. Ultimately, 77 articles were selected for detailed analysis based on their relevance to the topic.FindingsOur review identified a diverse array of entrepreneurial values that can be categorized into three themes: family values, family business values and societal entrepreneurial values. Furthermore, mechanisms facilitating the transmission of these values were classified into eight distinct types, i.e. relational embeddedness, vicarious learning, explicit communication, imprinting, educating, parenting styles, community-zeitgeist and genetics. The paper concludes with an agenda for future research on entrepreneurial value transmission in enterprising families.Practical implicationsUnderstanding how entrepreneurial values are transmitted within family firms can inform practices such as succession planning, leadership development and fostering a culture of entrepreneurship across generations.Originality/valueThis paper contributes to the theoretical development of family entrepreneurship by consolidating and synthesizing existing knowledge on entrepreneurial value transmission. It provides a comprehensive overview that can guide future empirical and conceptual investigations in this field.

How family businesses transfer their values across generation: a conceptual framework

Purpose Recognising the value of sustaining virtuous values in family business across generations, this paper aims to provide a conceptual framework and propose a mediated-moderated mechanism through which family members’ traits, such as family size and parenting style, influence the extent to which family business’s virtuous values transfer across generations. Design/methodology/approach The paper is based on systematic literature that was conducted using specific keyword searches in the business source databases of Emerald, ProQuest, ScienceDirect, EBSCOhost and SpringerLink. Findings This paper leads to a conceptual framework proposing a mediating relationship between family members’ traits and the transfer of virtuous values to the next generation. Further, two parallel mediators are proposed, moderated by traits of family members’ offspring, such as the age gap and gender of offspring. Research limitations/implications This paper proposes a conceptual framework focusing on transferring virtuous values across generations in the family business. It investigates family members’ traits, such as the size of the family and parenting style, to comprehend the family members’ traits and the transfer of virtuous values relationship. Practical implications The proposed conceptual framework should form the basis of interventions adopted by family business members to enhance the transfer to virtuous values across generations by positively impacting their moral self-efficacy and affective commitment to virtuous values. Originality/value Prior research on family businesses has primarily explored transgenerational succession. However, sustaining virtuous values across generations is equally important to retain a business’s legacy. Very limited scholarly attention has focused on these virtuous values in family business.

New value creation and family business sustainability: Identification of an intergenerational conflict resolution strategy

Unresolved tensions frequently lead to the failure of family businesses. Parents and their children should be able to work together to resolve protracted problems. This study intends to explore the intergenerational conflict resolution strategy in an effort to develop new family business values and ensure the sustainability of family enterprises. The respondents in this study were 152 family business owners in Eastern Indonesia. The analysis used is PLS-SEM. The results of this study indicate that creating new value requires three intergenerational conflict resolution strategies: intergenerational collaboration, accommodation, and forcing. The results of this study also show that a family business that is able to create new value will be able to have an impact on the sustainability of the family business. This study contributes to the Thomas-Kilmann conflict mode approach, wherein the Thomas-Kilmann conflict mode instrument method leads to the creation of new values and sustainability in family enterprises.

Does congruence between a descendant entrepreneur's personality traits and family business values matter for succession?

In this paper, we investigate two research queries pertaining to the success of small family business succession. First, we examine how the Big-5 personality traits of descendant entrepreneurs influence the success of their family business succession. Second, we investigate whether descendant entrepreneurs whose personality traits are congruent with the values of their family business, would lead to the success of their family business succession, through the mediating role of descendant entrepreneur-family business value congruence (DE-FBVC). We rely on the person-organization fit theory for our conceptual framework and we collected primary data from 124 respondents designated as chairman and managing directors in small family businesses. Our results show that a descendant entrepreneur's openness, extroversion, conscientiousness, and agreeableness traits are likely to lead to successful family business succession, but a descendant entrepreneur with neuroticism trait is unlikely to do so. In addition, our results reveal that the DE-FBVC mediates the relationship between openness and extroversion traits with succession success positively, but between neuroticism trait and succession success negatively. By contrast, we find that DE-FBVC does not mediate the relationship between conscientiousness and agreeableness traits with succession success. The findings of our study suggest that while four of the Big-5 personality traits matter for the success of small family business succession, specific personality traits of descendant entrepreneurs which are found to be congruent with the values of their family business, will also lead to succession success.

The role of values in enhancing longevity among indigenous black South African family businesses

Background: Values play a fundamental role in the longevity of family businesses. However, not fully understanding these roles threatens their long-term survival. Given their potentially large numbers and subsequent ability to reduce unemployment and poverty, it is critical that black-owned South African businesses achieve entrepreneurial success. While much research exists on family business values in a Western and European context, research on family business values in an indigenous black South African (IBSA) context is nonexistent.Aim: The aim of this research is to determine the role that family business values play in enhancing the longevity of IBSA family businesses.Setting: The study focused on IBSA family businesses that are independently owned and managed by one or more IBSAs and which are located in various major cities of South Africa.Methods: A qualitative methodological approach following a multiple–case study design was adopted. Semistructured interviews were conducted with several key participants using a combination of face-to-face, telephone and online interviews. The six steps of reflexive thematic analysis were used to analyse the data.Results: Four themes describe the role of family business values in enhancing longevity among the IBSA family businesses. Family business values were found to guide the behaviour of family business members, build the identity of the business-owning families and their businesses and build a sense of community in both the family and the family business. The continuity and success of their family businesses were also attributed to these underlying family business values.Conclusion: Family business founders and/or current leaders should articulate the value set they uphold and use it as a resource to build the identity of both their families and family businesses while moderating the behaviours of family business members.Contribution: The study responds to several research calls to investigate family businesses in African cultural settings and provides practical guidance to scholars, entrepreneurs and practitioners on how family businesses can use values as strategic resources to enhance business longevity and success.

A Values-Based Explanation of the Resilience of Family Firms: Evidence from Tunisia After the 2011 Jasmine Revolution

While the goals of long term sustainability and survival were thoroughly studied in family firms’ literature, to the best of our knowledge, rare studies had investigated the influence of values on the capacity of family firms to be resilient. In addition, this likely relationship is highly contingent on cultural and national contexts, as family values – on which family business values are dependent – are not the same across countries and World regions. These theoretical and empirical gaps motivated the present research which aims at investigating the probable influence of family firms’ values on the resilience of these firms in the unique context of Tunisia. This qualitative research is based on a body of discourse collected from nine managers belonging to five Tunisian family businesses. Our research allowed us to highlight some key family business values in a new underexplored setting that is an oriental country with a culture driven by Islamic and Arab values. More importantly, our analysis shows that family values underlie both community and business values. Finally, our results underscore the importance of business values, community values and family values in the resilience of the firms studied.

Values as antecedents of socio-emotional wealth behaviour in family firms

Research has shown that family firms differ from their non-family counterparts in terms of strategic behaviour. Socio-emotional wealth (SEW) is a homegrown theory in this context explaining differences in decision-making by acknowledging the unique connection between a family and their business. This paper contributes to the ongoing research related to the theory of socio-emotional wealth by investigating individual, family and family business values as antecedents and underlying motivators for SEW behaviour, influencing strategic decision-making in family firms, directly and as a mediator via SEW. A qualitative study was performed to analyse this connection and the effects on strategic decisions made in family firms. The outcomes show that individual and collective family values are the main drivers of SEW behaviour, changing over time and leading to a different focus on the dimensions of SEW, which is then represented in the strategic decisions made in the family business.

Values as antecedents of socio-emotional wealth behaviour in family firms

Research has shown that family firms differ from their non-family counterparts in terms of strategic behaviour. Socio-emotional wealth (SEW) is a homegrown theory in this context explaining differences in decision-making by acknowledging the unique connection between a family and their business. This paper contributes to the ongoing research related to the theory of socio-emotional wealth by investigating individual, family and family business values as antecedents and underlying motivators for SEW behaviour, influencing strategic decision-making in family firms, directly and as a mediator via SEW. A qualitative study was performed to analyse this connection and the effects on strategic decisions made in family firms. The outcomes show that individual and collective family values are the main drivers of SEW behaviour, changing over time and leading to a different focus on the dimensions of SEW, which is then represented in the strategic decisions made in the family business.

A Diamond in the Rough: J. M. Huber and the PATH Business

In late 2011, Jerry Bertram, vice president and general manager of the fire retardant additives business of Huber Engineered Materials (HEM), a division of family-owned J. M. Huber Corporation, was preparing to present the potential acquisition of the precipitated alumina trihydrate (PATH) business to the environment, health, and safety committee of Huber's corporate board. He had convinced HEM's leadership of PATH's strategic value to their business and the urgency of the acquisition based on PATH's parent company's movement into Chapter 11 bankruptcy and its plans to close the PATH plant. Winning board approval posed a major challenge. It was unclear whether the plant would remain operational, because HEM would have to enter a shared-services arrangement with PATH's parent company, which continued to use the site. In addition, acquiring PATH would mean integrating its specialized, unionized labor force into Huber, which had very few union workers. Finally, early due diligence had revealed tens of millions of dollars of potential environmental risk on the site. The last issue was particularly critical, given Huber's generations-long history of respect for the environment, and its executives' and directors' reluctance to take on any business with excessive environmental risk. This case illustrates in depth the family business values that can promote consideration of an ostensibly unconventional and risky strategic move, and enable executives to push for approval of the same, as backed by comprehensive risk assessment and mitigation plans.

The Importance of Brand Values in Family Business

Only a small body of literature exists on linking key marketing concepts in family business contexts and those studies that do exist show a significant bias towards brand management. Both the relevance of the subject and the lack of research assuming this challenge to date justify the interest and timeliness of this literature review. Based on this interest—and the existing research opportunities—this article presents the concept of brand, together with a framework for its analysis in family business contexts. The paper summarizes the six main lines of research proposed, three from the perspective of identity management, and three from the perspective of stakeholders. The last section presents a series of interesting aspects for carrying out future research.

Influence of early exposure to family business experience on developing entrepreneurs

Purpose– The purpose of this paper is to consider the influences of family business and exposure to family business ideas upon students and graduates during their transition from higher education (HE) towards career identification of entrepreneurship. It explores influences, values and experiences actively impacting on business start-up following exposure to family business or business ideas.Design/methodology/approach– A grounded theory approach was adopted to investigate the wider student/graduate transition between HE and business start-up support provision. The aim of the interviews undertaken was to investigate those influences actively impacting on business start-up provision and reflect upon the complexities within the student journey through transition towards business start-up. The researchers investigated stories, experiences and insights of nascent and practicing entrepreneurs acquiring rich qualitative evidence.Findings– This study evaluates the influences impacting upon practicing entrepreneurs following exposure to family business and awareness of business ideas arising from immediate or extended family prior to undertaking a business start-up. The findings inform discussions about family role models and contribute to the development of enterprise education pedagogy. It is found that individuals attachment to business and family business values are strongly formed concepts that motivate and steer entrepreneurial direction.Practical implications– This paper contributes to development of enterprise and entrepreneurship educator pedagogy and explores use of entrepreneurial role models and positive learning experiences gained through personal exposure to family business and ideas.Originality/value– This study contributes to a fuller understanding of the potential for positive influence through exposure to familial businesses, growing up around businesses and awareness of business ideas arising from immediate or extended family. Integration of learning opportunities with development of pedagogy will be of interest to the enterprise education community.

Family Business Values: analysis of its influence on family members ́ behavior

This research focuses on how values system of family business in Cordoba, moderate behaviors within family business. A set of instrumental values and behaviors evaluated from one to five were answered by 446 people belonging to 112 family firms. Results show significant correlations among variables that shape the values system as well as almost normal distribution for behaviors analyzed. The values system within a family firm act as a moderator of family business members´ conducts. The instrumental values, guides needed for family firm survival, moderating behaviors are Ethic, cohesion and austerity. Ethic moderates communication, compromise. Cohesion affects confidence, acquiescence and cooperation meanwhile confidence and communication is moderated by austerity.

An assessment of selected family business values in small and medium-sized family businesses

This study highlights the influence of selected business family values on the success of small and medium-sized family businesses. Success, for the purpose of this study, is measured using two variables, namely Harmonious family relationships and Perceived future continuity. The primary objective of this study is twofold: firstly, to identify the potential influence of selected business family values on the success of family businesses and secondly, to make practical recommendations on actions that families in business can take to ensure harmonious family relationships and the future continuity of their family businesses. The target population of this study was small and medium-sized family businesses in South Africa, and a total of 931 individual questionnaires were returned from 173 family businesses. The data collected was subjected to various statistical analyses, including exploratory factor analysis, calculating Cronbach alpha coefficients, and multiple linear regression analysis. The findings of this study show that the more family members perceive fair treatment in the family business, the more harmonious family relationships and perceptions of business continuity will be. In addition, the perceived level of trust, commitment and effective communication has a positive influence on family harmony and business continuity. This study has added to the empirical body of family business research, and provides an important first step in gaining insights into selected family business values that influence the effective functioning of family businesses.

Culture and values in family business—A review and suggestions for future research

This article provides a review of key literature in the field of culture, values and family business by addressing three key questions. First, what is culture in a family business context and how can it be defined and conceptualized? Second, what can culture do for the family business? And third, which factors or attributes shape culture in family business? The article presents several suggestions for future research and previews the four articles included in the special issue on culture and values in family businesses.

Emerging Trends in Global Ethics: A Comparative Study of U.S. and International Family Business Values

Although family business comprises the majority of global business, it is significantly under-researched. Yet it is considered to have unique ethical values compared to non-family corporations. This is attributable to its family orientation. Therefore, it is worthwhile to identify and define dominant family business ethics values. The authors compare a sample of the U.S. family business, U.S. corporate entities, and international family business mission statements for frequency of ethics values. The data reveals three primary findings: (1) generally, the U.S. family business expressed a higher frequency of ethical values than its non-family corporate and international counterpart, (2) U.S. family business has a strong lead in “integrity” and “honesty” whereas international family business leads in “environmentalism,” “globalism,” and “social responsibility,” and (3) generally, the frequency of ethics values for all family business globally has increased over time. The family business mission statement continues to provide ethical direction for the majority of global business. The emerging family business values identified in our sample will further impact global business success and promote ethical sustainability world-wide.

Exploring Horticultural Employees' Attitudes Toward Their Jobs: A Qualitative Analysis Based on Herzberg's Theory of Job Satisfaction

Job satisfaction is likely the most studied work-related attitude and is assumed to influence a variety of behaviors. This study analyzes the job satisfaction of agricultural employees using Herzberg's theory, which is broadly employed in management. Fourteen horticultural businesses participated in case studies of labor-management practices. Fifteen nonsupervisory employee interviews were analyzed regarding job satisfaction. Components of job satisfaction relevant to horticultural employees were family-business values, achievement, recognition, work itself, involvement, personal life, interpersonal relationships, job security, supervision, working conditions, organization, safety, compensation, and information. While support for Herzberg's theory is weak, it is useful for classifying employees' attitudes.