One of the most critical organizational changes family businesses deal with at some stage in their lives is the succession process. When evaluating it, two main targets are sought: quality and effectiveness. To meet these quality-effectiveness standards three elements should be transferred from...

The link between longevity and values has been pointed out by several authors, who have underlined values as an important factor for supporting a long-term vision, as well as a source of competitive advantage based on using values as specific company resources. Nevertheless, not many empirical...

This study builds on the results of a recent international study, "Success as a Function of Love, Trust and Freedom in Family Business" (Gallo et al., 2001), which introduced a new conceptual model identifying family unity and commitment as driving forces behind the success of Family Businesses...

In response to the statistics showing high mortality among family businesses, this study looks at a group of Spanish family businesses (FBs) that have demonstrated an ability to grow and innovate. Typically, these FBs have gained prestige in the Spanish economy not only because they have reached...

The problem of CEO succession is critically important yet unique and distinct from that of turnover at other levels. Research in management agrees with the findings in family business research regarding the preference for an insider as successor, more specifically a family insider. Successful...

This paper is a continuation of two earlier papers, "Ethics of Personal Behavior in Family Business (I)" (Gallo, 1999) and "Ethics of Personal Behavior in Family Business (II): Differences in Perceptions" (Gallo and Cappuyns, 1999). All three use data gathered from a questionnaire sent in 1998...

It has been observed in previous studies that certain characteristics of family businesses may impede internationalization. These characteristics include the concentration of decision-making in the hands of a single shareholder or small group of shareholders, delays in the succession process,...

The results presented in the following research paper are based on information collected by means of a questionnaire sent to 1,800 medium-sized and large Spanish family businesses. The owners and managers of these firms were asked about their perceptions of the frequency of violations of ethics...

This paper documents the research carried out by the Chair of Family Business at IESE using a sample of 305 companies, consisting of 204 non-family businesses (NFBs) and 101 family businesses (FBs). The fact that the FBs in the sample were among the top FBs in Spain and that their financial...

The purpose of this pioneering study in the field of family business is to measure the degree of commitment to the family business among family members who do not actually work in the firm. After analyzing the characteristics of these people, we identify four very different groups. The existence...