The tetralemma of the business family

2020 ◽  
Vol 33 (2) ◽  
pp. 433-446
Author(s):  
Heiko Kleve ◽  
Steffen Roth ◽  
Tobias Köllner ◽  
Ralf Wetzel
Keyword(s):  
Family Business ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Social Systems ◽  
Business Research ◽  
Indian Logic ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Research And Practice ◽  
Business Family

PurposeThis conceptual article aims to contribute to the design of a theory of family-influenced firms by a framework for the management of business-family dilemmas.Design/methodology/approachIt combines systemic principles with the tetralemma, a tool from ancient Indian logic that families and businesses can use to manage and reframe dilemmas without dissolving the dilemmatic tensions or blurring their boundaries.FindingsIn applying the tetralemma, the article offers a range of suggestions, such as observing business and family as two discrete, yet codependent, social systems and envisioning conceptual and methodological imports from codependency research and therapy into family business research and practice.Originality/valueThe article proposes a framework for the selective and flexible navigation of family-business tensions without dissolving them or blurring their boundaries.

Research on innovation in family businesses: are we building an ivory tower?

2017 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 44-92 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elena Fuetsch ◽  
Julia Suess-Reyes
Keyword(s):  
Family Business ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Family Businesses ◽  
Recent Criticism ◽  
Practical Relevance ◽  
Journal Articles ◽  
Business Research ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Innovation Research ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose One of the central requirements of research is that the knowledge acquired should not only be academically rigorous, but also socially useful. If an article fails to address practical relevance, the audience will question its value and respond with “so what?”. Due to recent criticism regarding the practical relevance of innovation research, the purpose of this paper is to examine whether a similar “ivory divide” prevails in research on innovation in family businesses. More specifically, this paper investigates to what extent and at what depth researchers generate practical implications for innovation in family businesses. Furthermore, different strategies to bridge the “ivory divide” are discussed. Design/methodology/approach This literature review systematically analyses the findings of 50 journal articles focusing on innovation in family businesses published between 2004 and 2015. Based on this, the articles are classified according to their degree of practical relevance. Findings Although the findings unanimously show the relevance of innovation for strengthening business’s performance, only a minority of articles offer in-depth implications for practitioners in terms of practical guidance for action and application-oriented recommendations. A number of reasons for the development of this “ivory divide” are discussed and suggestions for how the connection between research and practice could be strengthened are provided. Originality/value This paper attempts to provide an impulse toward more practically oriented family business research in order to increase its interestingness to academics and its value to practitioners.

A missing link: a distributed cognitive perspective on fit

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Gayanga Bandara Herath
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Social Systems ◽  
Cognitive Perspective ◽  
Missing Link ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Narrow Focus ◽  
Cognitive Framework ◽  
Novel Approach ◽  
Complex Social Systems

PurposeThis article presents a cognitive framework to study dynamic/adaptive aspects of a collection of popular fit measures used in organisation research, in an attempt to highlight what there is to be gained.Design/methodology/approachThis paper uses a distributed e-cognition (DEC) framework to examine the current organisational literature of fit measures.FindingsThis paper highlights that most measures have a rather narrow focus and do not address dynamic/adaptive aspects in complex social systems (e.g. organisations). To both provide a way to integrate fit measures and cover the cognition gap in this literature, this article highlights the need for a more sophisticated measure.Originality/valueThis paper provides a novel approach to examining organisational fit literature through a distributed (e)-cognitive framework.

Professional trilemma of students with family business experience

Kybernetes ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 45 (3) ◽  
pp. 446-460 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jaka Vadnjal ◽  
Predrag Ljubotina
Keyword(s):  
Family Business ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Related Factors ◽  
Senior Student ◽  
Content Type ◽  
East European ◽  
Educational Backgrounds ◽  
The Mean

Purpose – Family businesses represent the largest share of small-sized firms in majority of economies around the world. Having in mind the global economic situation this trend is expected to be continued. With the goal of better understanding of the process of transferring the business to the next generation, which ensures a long-term success, the purpose of this paper is to investigate expectations of student’s with family business background. Design/methodology/approach – The research addresses the issue of an individual’s perception of entrepreneurship and the related factors that influence individual’s decision on whether to build a career as an employee, become a successor of family business or start own business as an independent entrepreneur. The authors separately analyzed West European (data from another study), East European and Slovenian senior student population for the purpose of comparative study. Students were surveyed and binominal regression was used for statistics. Findings – The results show differences between investigated populations and positions Slovenian students in the mean. The authors anticipate that differences are caused by historical, cultural and educational backgrounds. This challenging area is raising a lot of sub-questions for possible future research. Originality/value – The value of the study is in the replication of the existing methodology from the benchmarking study and result comparison.

Nuts and bolts of team creativity

2014 ◽  
Vol 30 (11) ◽  
pp. 4-6
Keyword(s):  
Case Studies ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Reading Time ◽  
Social Systems ◽  
Team Creativity ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Social ◽  
Pertinent Information ◽  
Team Functioning ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose – This paper aims to review the latest management developments across the globe and pinpoint practical implications from cutting-edge research and case studies. Design/methodology/approach – This briefing is prepared by an independent writer who adds their own impartial comments and places the articles in context. Findings – The great number of concepts found in literature are organized into a framework that distinguishes relevant inputs that can affect team functioning; relevant mediators for team creativity (TC) and TC outcomes. The framework is reviewed and discussed within the context of the social systems in which the team is embedded. Practical implications – The paper provides strategic insights and practical thinking that have influenced some of the world’s leading organizations. Originality/value – The briefing saves busy executives and researchers hours of reading time by selecting only the very best, most pertinent information and presenting it in a condensed and easy-to-digest format.

scholarly journals Organisational and professional challenges amid the evolution of sustainability reporting: a theoretical framework and an agenda for future research

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Alessandro Lai ◽  
Riccardo Stacchezzini
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Sustainability Reporting ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Special Issue ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Professional Capital ◽  
Research And Practice ◽  
Corporate Reporting ◽  
Professional Challenges ◽  
Reporting Practice

Purpose This paper aims to trace subsequent steps of the sustainability reporting evolution in terms of changes in the organisation fields and professional jurisdictions involved. As such, it highlights the (interrelated) organisational and professional challenges associated with the progressive incorporation of “sustainability” within corporate reporting. Design/methodology/approach The paper draws on Suddaby and Viale’s (2011) theorisation of how professionals reshape organisational fields to highlight how organisational spaces, actors, rules and professional capital evolve alongside the incorporation of sustainability within corporate reporting. Findings The paper shows organisational spaces, actors, rules and professional capital mobilised during the recent evolution of sustainability reporting, starting from a period in which there was no space for sustainability, to more recent periods in which sustainability gained increasing momentum beyond initial niches, and culminating in more integrated forms of sustainability reporting. Research limitations/implications Although the analysis is limited to empirical evidence collected by prior research and practice on sustainability reporting, the paper offers a view to imagine how the incorporation of sustainability within corporate reporting relies on and affects organisational fields and professional jurisdictions. Originality/value The paper offers a lens to interpret corporate and professional challenges associated with the more recent evolutions of sustainability reporting practice and standard setting. It also allows framing the papers accepted in the special issue on “new challenges in sustainability reporting” and concludes by suggesting an agenda for future research.

At the heart of family businesses: how copreneurs craft work-life balance

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Romana Dreyer ◽  
Christine Busch
Keyword(s):  
Family Business ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Work Life ◽  
Work Life Balance ◽  
Life Domains ◽  
Life Balance ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Personal Resource ◽  
Small Family ◽  
Resource Perspective

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to understand how experienced copreneurs of small family business (SFB), as the smallest unit and heart of their family business (FB), may create work-life balance (WLB). Copreneurs evince highly intertwined life-domains and often struggle to respite while managing their high business demands.Design/methodology/approachIn this couple interview study with 18 experienced copreneurial couples of SFBs (N = 36), we investigated strategies copreneurs use to create their WLB by merging a resource perspective (Hobfoll, 1989) with the concept of WLB crafting (Sturges, 2012).FindingsA key strategy in copreneurial couples was the structural establishment of microdomains, such as periods of personal resource recreation within a macrodomain (e.g. work) via individual physical and cognitive WLB crafting. Copreneurs used relational WLB crafting with a strong emphasis on seeking support and mainly to protect their microdomains by relying on their spouses as boundary keepers. Women more often expressed the importance of health and time for respite, as cognitive WLB crafting, and they were more active in creating (joint) recovery opportunities. Dyadic WLB crafting strategies were used when goal congruency for work or private activities was high.Originality/valueThis research applies WLB crafting research to the smallest unit of SFBs, namely copreneurs. The study provides in-depth insights into the strategies copreneurs of SFB use to create a satisfying WLB.

Advancing the multidimensional approach to family business professionalization

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Gülçin Polat
Keyword(s):  
Organizational Structure ◽  
Work Environment ◽  
Family Business ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Family Firms ◽  
Academic Research ◽  
Multidimensional Approach ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Multidimensional Construct ◽  
Definition Of

PurposeAlthough it has been implicitly or explicitly assumed that family business professionalization is indeed a multidimensional construct, there has been a tendency to confine it to the employment of nonfamily managers and delegating authority in academic research. Dekker et al. (2013) have made an impressive work in untangling the multidimensional structure of family business professionalization. This paper aims to introduce a more comprehensive multidimensional approach and a framework to understand and study family business professionalization by identifying additional dimensions.Design/methodology/approachThe conceptual framework relies on insights derived from the literature on family business professionalization, occupational professionalism and organizational professionalism to reveal the broader multidimensionality of family business professionalization.FindingsThe proposed framework extends the definition of family business professionalization and offers additional dimensions which were grouped under five overarching headings: professionalization of management, professionalization of organizational structure, processes and operations, professionalization of family's relationship with business, professionalization of employees and professionalization of work environment and culture.Originality/valueThis paper contributes to the literature by providing a wider approach for the understanding of family business professionalization. It presents a new way of thinking about family business professionalization, underlining the importance of employees and organizational culture for the professionalization process in family firms.

Research methods as bridging devices: path and context mapping in governance

2019 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kristof Van Assche ◽  
Raoul Beunen ◽  
Monica Gruezmacher ◽  
Martijn Duineveld ◽  
Leith Deacon ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Research Methods ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Continuous Production ◽  
The Other ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Research And Practice ◽  
Shifting Balance ◽  
Initial Concept

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the potential, both analytically and practically, of understanding research methods as bridging devices. Methods can bridge theory and empirics, but it is argued that they can perform several bridging functions: between theory and praxis, between analysis and strategy and between past and future. The focus is on those forms of bridging relevant for understanding and effectuating change in governance, at community level and at the scale of organizations. Design/methodology/approach The paper develops a perspective on methods as bridging devices. It uses the newly minted methods of governance path and context mapping as a case study. These methods conceptually derive from evolutionary governance theory (EGT) and were developed and tested in Canadian empirical research. The case helps to develop insight in features, forms and limitations of methods as bridging devices in governance research and practice. The authors then use the case to further develop the initial concept of bridging more generally, emphasizing the shifting balance between methods as bridging and creating boundaries. Findings Both the case study and the theoretical analysis underline the necessary imperfection of any method as bridging device. The authors affirm the potential of method to perform different bridging functions at the same time, while revealing clear tradeoffs in each role. Tradeoffs occur with adapted versions of the method producing new strengths and weaknesses in new contexts. In each of the forms of bridging involved neither side can be reduced to the other, so a gap always remains. It is demonstrated that the practice of bridging through method in governance is greatly helped when methods are flexibly deployed in ongoing processes of bricolage, nesting and modification. Governance enables the continuous production of new framing devices and other methods. Originality/value The idea of methods as bridging devices is new, and can assist the development of a broader understanding of the various forms and functions of research methods. Moreover, it helps to discern roles of research methods in the functioning of governance. The context of governance helps to recognize the multi-functionality of research methods, and their transformation in a context of pressured decision-making. Moreover, this approach contributes to the understanding of governance as adumbrated by EGT.

Passing on the legacy: exploring the dynamics of succession in family businesses in Pakistan

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Asma AbdulRahim Chang ◽  
Muhammad Shujaat Mubarik ◽  
Navaz Naghavi
Keyword(s):  
Family Business ◽  
Succession Planning ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Family Firms ◽  
Family Members ◽  
Family Businesses ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Traditional Family ◽  
Interviewing Technique

PurposeBy taking the theory of entrepreneurial legacy as the baseline, this study explores the various aspects of succession planning in indigenous family businesses especially the role of female family members in succession and conflicts in family businesses.Design/methodology/approachThe study is qualitative in nature and adopts narrative inquiry to explore the aspects of succession planning. In doing so, the study utilizes an in-depth interviewing technique with nine participants who run their family-owned firms which are mostly in their second or third generation for analysis.FindingsThe findings are concurrent with the literature that indicates a lack of strategic succession planning although ordinary or natural succession does occur in some firms. The study also reports a lack of consideration for female members in succession, daughters in particular, for traditional family firms (FFs) in contrast to entrepreneurial FFs.Research limitations/implicationsThe study has many implications for family-owned firms in Pakistan as they need to align their family business with the theory of entrepreneurial legacy and its three strategic activities in order to ensure the longevity of their business.Originality/valueExploring how succession planning takes place in family indigenous family businesses and what is the role of female family members in succession and conflicts in family businesses are original contributions of this study.

Reconciling practice, research and reality of integrated care. Critical reflections on the state of a discipline

2020 ◽  
Vol 28 (3) ◽  
pp. 311-318 ◽  
Author(s):  
Axel Kaehne
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Health Care Policy ◽  
Practice Research ◽  
Integration Policy ◽  
Care Policy ◽  
Policy And Practice ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Research And Practice ◽  
Policy Practice

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to critically reflect on the practice, rhetoric and reality of integrating care. Echoing Le Grand's framework of motivation, agency and policy, it is argued that the stories the authors tell themselves why the authors embark on integration programmes differ from the reasons why managers commit to these programmes. This split between policy rhetoric and reality has implications for the way the authors investigate integration.Design/methodology/approachExamining current integration policy, practice and research, the paper adopts the critical framework articulated by Le Grand about the underlying assumptions of health care policy and practice.FindingsIt is argued that patient perspectives are speciously placed at the centre of integration policy but mask the existing organizational and managerial rationalities of integration. Making the patient the measure of all things integration would turn this agenda back on its feet.Originality/valueThe paper discusses the underlying assumptions of integration policy, practice and research. Increasing the awareness about the gap between what the authors do, why the authors do it and the stories the authors tell themselves about it injects a much needed amount of criticality into research and practice.

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