Job creation : a comparative analysis of organisational structures in family and non-family firms through the economic cycle

This study examines the impact of family ownership and the separation of ownership and management on firm performance, measured in terms of job creation. The analysis compares differences between family and non-family firms, as well as between firms managed by external professionals and those in which management responsibilities are undertaken by owners. By leveraging the panel structure of the dataset, the study further explores the influence of economic cycles, accounting for different combinations of ownership and management structures. A key finding of the study challenges the view that family firms generally outperform non-family firms in terms of job creation. Although this applies to non-professionalised firms, which account for most family firms, it does not apply to professionalised firms. Phases of the economic cycle are found not to affect the performance of family and non-family non-professionalised firms differently. However, professionalised family firms are found to both suffer more the effect of recessionary phases and display a greater capacity for job creation in expansive phases than professionalised non-family firms.