The enterpriseness of business families: Conceptualization, scale development and validation

This article addresses the business family, which so far has received only limited scholarly attention. The business family as the group of family members regularly discussing and deciding business matters is key for the functioning of both the business and the family. Specifically, we propose and empirically test the concept of the enterpriseness of business families, which is the ability to handle the potentially contradictory expectations of the family and business systems. We empirically validate the enterpriseness scale using a sample of 451 business families. Results indicate high levels of validity and reliability. The two subscales decision-making ability (six items) and business family identity (four items) offer a methodically rigorous, theoretically sound, and parsimonious measure. The article presents opportunities for potential applications of the enterpriseness concept and scale for family business as well as business family research and practice. •Enterpriseness of business families is conceptualized via decision-making ability and identity.•Family and business family differ considerably in size.•A scale for measuring enterpriseness is developed and validated.•With 10 items in total, the scale is parsimonious and applicable in a variety of contexts.•The scale supports the importance of business families in family business research.