Category: Research Insight

Over My Dead Body: The Unseen Influence of Wives on Succession

Around the world, women have risen to the upper echelons of family businesses. But among women who are wives of the family business leader, even those involved in the business themselves, attitudes Read more

Does the Family Matter? Improving Executive Compensation Practices in Family Firms

The salaries of top executives can be a hot topic and a source of family business conflict and stress – at family businesses and non-family firms. How can family business leaders decide what’s Read more

Microsoft, Genentech and Southwest Airlines are all iconic companies that started off with a big disadvantage. All were founded during recessionary times: Microsoft in 1975; Genentech in 1976; and Read more

Women Can Help Family Firms Innovate – but Socioemotional Factors Matter

Around Europe and elsewhere, the number of women in leadership roles is going up, and they are having a measurable impact on innovation and profits. Many researchers have found that having more women Read more

Firm But Flexible Parents Raise the Best Family Business Leaders

In their aim to raise the next generation of family business leaders, parents often question if their parenting style is effective. They often ask themselves: Am I being too lenient or too strict? Am Read more

'Big Family:' Relatives Outside the Family Business Can Help It Thrive

Words like “non-active” or “passive” are misnomers for family business members that work elsewhere. On the contrary, these “satellite” family members are quite active and beneficial to Read more

How Family Businesses Can Attract and Keep the Best People

Despite the COVID-19 pandemic being mostly behind us, many organizations, particularly family-led small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs), are still grappling with the fallout. During a crisis or Read more

Foster Business Family Identity Through Social Impact

Ford, Estee Lauder, Hyatt. What do these names have in common? For starters, they are behind some of the largest family firms in the world. But they are also associated with a revolution in finance Read more

How should entrepreneurs spend their time to enhance their effectiveness? Conventional wisdom would suggest that they must dedicate almost the entirety of their time and effort at work to breathe Read more

Why do entrepreneurs run their ventures from home? According to the British Household Panel Survey (BHPS)—a representative longitudinal dataset of individuals and households in the UK—nearly 40% Read more