Family growth versus family firm growth: professional management and succession process

Purpose – Given the relevance of family businesses and the substantial weight that they carry within the socio-economic make-up of any country, this paper consists of the analysis of family firms to explore whether there are any differences between companies which grow at a faster rate than the family and those in which the family grows at a greater rate than the company, in terms of their process of succession and the professionalisation of the people involved and the methods of management. The purpose of this paper is to differentiate between different groups of family businesses through a set of independent variables. Design/methodology/approach – The paper opted for discriminant analysis as an appropriate statistical tool, since it allowed the assigning of an individual to a pre-defined group (dependent variable) on the basis of a number of characteristics (independent variables). A total of 180 family businesses were analysed. Findings – The results of the study show that significant differences exist between family firms where the family grows more than the company and those where the company grows more than the family. Each group has a different vision. The former is more oriented towards meeting their family needs through the company, whereas the latter is more oriented towards business and professional efficiency. Research limitations/implications – One of the limitations arises from the fact that the question concerning the rate of growth of the company and the family is a “self-reported” question that can lead to bias due to the subjective perception of growth. Other limitations arise from the cross-cutting and exploratory nature of the research. Originality/value – This paper analyses the differences between family firms where the family grows more than the company and those where the company grows more than the family.