Socioemotional Wealth Across the Family Firm Life Cycle: A Commentary on “Family Business Survival and the Role of Boards”

2013 ◽  
Vol 37 (6) ◽  
pp. 1391-1397 ◽  
Author(s):  
Isabelle Le Breton-Miller ◽  
Danny Miller
2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-23
Author(s):  
Irfan Saleem ◽  
Faiza Khalid ◽  
Muhammad Nadeem

Learning outcomes This case study can help the reader to understand how to build an effective board for family business, and why evolving board structure can help family firm to sustain for a longer period in Market. Reader can also learn about role of independent director, CEO's Succession process and ways to deal with duality issue that family owned enterprise may face during a transition from generation X to Y. Case overview/synopsis This teaching case study describes various decision-making situations using example of a Pakistani family firm and entrepreneurs who started the business few decades back in France. This partially disguised case is based on actual events. The data are collected based on discussions with family business owners and minutes of meetings. The objective of study is to make sense of the family business theories e.g. socio emotional wealth stakeholder and agency. Case readers can also learn about the family’s business governance practices using diverse scenarios presented in this case. Complexity academic level This study is suitable for graduate and undergraduate studies. Supplementary materials Teaching Notes are available for educators only. Please contact your library to gain login details or email [email protected] to request teaching notes. Subject code CSS 7: Management science.


Author(s):  
Unai Arzubiaga ◽  
Alfredo De Massis ◽  
Amaia Maseda ◽  
Txomin Iturralde

AbstractThis study investigates whether a projected family firm image can affect access to financial resources, which is key to providing broader strategic options and meeting short-term financial needs, especially for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Building on the signaling literature, we consider the family SME leaders’ perspective and conceptually and empirically examine whether they believe a projected family firm image acts as a credible signal to the lender. We also examine additional boundary conditions influencing the family SME’s projected image–access to financial resources relationship, by specifically investigating whether firm age and size alter the degree of the signaling effect. Our unique data on 289 Spanish family SMEs reveal that projected family firm image can act as an attractive signal to lenders, leading to better access to financial resources for SMEs. Furthermore, firm size reinforces the role of the projected family firm image as a positive signal. These findings address an important practical issue in terms of family firm stakeholder perceptions, offering contributions to the corporate branding, family business, and financing literature.


Author(s):  
Geoffrey Martin ◽  
Luis Gomez-Mejia

Purpose A growing volume of family firm literature has argued that the preservation of family socioemotional wealth takes precedence over the pursuit of financial goals. The purpose of this paper is to develop a conceptual framework that builds knowledge regarding the two-way relationship between socioemotional and financial forms of wealth, to develop a more complete theory of wealth concerns that may inform family firm decision-making. Design/methodology/approach The authors conceptually examine contingencies affecting the relationship between financial and socioemotional wealth (in both causal directions). Findings The authors predict when one form of wealth (socioemotional/financial) is likely to dominate the other (financial/socioemotional) in the family firm’s strategic decisions. Originality/value The paper advances knowledge on the two-way relationship between socioemotional and financial forms of wealth providing a platform for further development in the nascent field of family business research, including our understanding of family firm decisions regarding control and influence over the family business, environmental policy, altruism toward family members, R&D, accounting choices and corporate diversification.


2012 ◽  
Vol 25 (3) ◽  
pp. 258-279 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pascual Berrone ◽  
Cristina Cruz ◽  
Luis R. Gomez-Mejia

This article makes the case for the socioemotional wealth (SEW) approach as the potential dominant paradigm in the family business field. The authors argue that SEW is the most important differentiator of the family firm as a unique entity and, as such, helps explain why family firms behave distinctively. In doing so, the authors review the concept of SEW, its different dimensions, and its links with other theoretical approaches. The authors also address the issue of how to measure this construct and offer various alternatives for operationalizing it. Finally, they offer a set of topics that can be pursued in future studies using the SEW approach.


2021 ◽  
Vol 0 (0) ◽  
Author(s):  
Bart Henssen ◽  
Matti Koiranen

Abstract In this article, we examine the factors which lead to CEOs’ joy of working for the family firm, as it is expected to contribute to their willingness to invest in its perpetuation and success. We focus on three such factors: CEOs’ collective psychological ownership, their individual psychological ownership, and CEOs’ stewardship behavior. We find that on the one hand, the relationship between CEOs’ collective psychological ownership and their joy of working for the family business is mediated by their stewardship behavior, and on the other hand, stewardship behavior mediates the relationship between CEOs’ individual psychological ownership and their joy of work. We make valuable contributions to psychological ownership literature, to stewardship literature, and to the literature on joy and joy at work.


1996 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. 347-368 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kenneth Kaye

When a shared business retards the life-cycle development of both generations, it may not be possible for consultants to “restore” their system to health as a family business, because it is unhealthy for such families to be in business together at all. Fantasies of saving their family business, or “succeeding” in passing it to the next generation, are misguided at best. The author argues that when parents' ego development is inadequate, normal individuation makes them and their children so anxious that the business functions like an addiction. A primary role of the consultant is to recognize such cases, diagnose them carefully, and intervene in ways that encourage the next generation to explore a wider range of options.


2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 22-37 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emily Marett ◽  
Laura Marler ◽  
Kent Marett

Purpose One of the key characteristics that distinguishes the family business from other firms is the importance of accruing and maintaining socioemotional wealth (SEW). Using an experimental design, this exploratory study investigates the communication practices of family business leaders responding to employees responsible for a business disruption. The purpose of this paper is to determine whether managers take action to protect SEW while responding to a crisis. Design/methodology/approach Three employees of a family firm participated in the experiment. A family member employee and a non-family employee were instructed to write a message informing a family member leader of a business disruption they created (infecting a computer with malware). The family member leader then received these messages and wrote a response to each employee. These responses were then content analyzed to determine whether messages expressed SEW importance and to see if SEW content differed based on the recipient’s familial status. Findings Content analysis of messages intended for family members and non-family employees indicated that messages intended for family members contain significantly different content associated with dimensions of Socioemotional Wealth Importance scale, particularly in terms of reinforcing family dominance, sustaining family continuity, and maintaining family enrichment. Originality/value This study is the first to examine crisis communication within the family firm and whether SEW endowment occurs via internal communication within the family firm. By utilizing an experiment, this study extends the SEW literature further by adding to the diversity of techniques utilized to study this topic.


2014 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 4-23 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gonzalo Gómez Betancourt ◽  
Isabel C. Botero ◽  
Jose Bernardo Betancourt Ramirez ◽  
Maria Piedad López Vergara

Purpose – Although researchers have highlighted the importance of relational and family factors for the sustainability of a family firm, there is not much empirical research exploring how emotions and the management of emotions play a role in the interpersonal dynamics of family business owners. The purpose of this paper is to explore how the way family members manage their emotions affects the interpersonal dynamics in the family, business, and ownership subsystems of a family firm. Design/methodology/approach – The paper presents an in-depth case study from a family firm in Colombia-South America. Findings – The results indicate that the capability that family members have to manage their emotions influences the interpersonal dynamics that take place in the family firm at the individual and group level. In this case, the paper found that although emotional intelligence (EI) affected interpersonal relationships in a firm, this effect was based on the individual's willingness to use their EI capabilities, previous history between people, and the goals individuals have within each subsystem in a family firm. The paper also found that interpersonal dynamics, in turn, influence how family members work together. Research limitations/implications – Because this study uses an in-depth case study, the intention of the paper is to provide an initial picture of how EI can play a role in the interpersonal interactions between family business owners. The authors hope that this study can be used as a building block to enhance the understanding of the role of EI in family firms. Practical implications – EI represents an individual's capability to perceive, understand, manage, and regulate self and other's emotions. For family firms, this means that family business owners can use this capability to determine how to enact their roles in the family firm and how to interact with other to ensure harmony in their relationships. Originality/value – This paper builds on previous work on emotions in family firms to explore the role of EI in family firms, and provides an empirical exploration of the role of management of emotions in family firms.


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