The Family Business’ Chair (CEFUV) presents a new Research Note "How Family Business’ Heterogeneity influences family governance decisions" carried out by Rocío Arteaga (University of Oviedo) and Alejandro Escribá (University of Valencia and IVIE).
This research aims to better understand those characteristics of family businesses that manage to create a context where family governance systems are adopted more frequently.
Based on the characteristics of family businesses in terms of ownership structure, management involvement, and family and organizational complexity, four contexts have been identified that generate different communication needs, and at the same time are related to the use of different mechanisms of family governance. In this way we distinguish contexts such as:
• Founder-centric companies
• Protective
• Consensual
• Business evolved
Our findings show that family protocols are associated to contexts with high family involvement in family management and complexity, while family councils are more frequent in those companies where there is a separation of managerial and owner roles, along with high complexity organizational and family.
The study highlights the value and use of family advice and protocols in order to establish a relationship between the owner family and the company. This research note helps to better understand which family governance systems may be more appropriate in different contexts and to relativize the need for these mechanisms depending on the communication needs created within each of the contexts.
The Family Business’ Chair of the University of Valencia (CEFUV), promoted by the Valencian Association of Entrepreneurs (AVE), the School of Entrepreneurs (EDEM), the Valencian Institute for the Family Business Study (IVEFA) and the Institute of the Family Business (IEF), and is currently sponsored by BANKIA and BROSETA ABOGADOS.
