Abstract

Family businesses are seen as a form of company that, compared to non-family businesses, can enjoy special competitive advantages through the interplay of family and business on the one hand (Hoffmann, Hoelscher, and Sorenson 2006), but on the other hand is characterized by increased complexity (von Schlippe and Frank 2013; Tagiuri and Davis 1996) and a multitude of vulnerabilities. Constant disputes and disagreement about how the family is positioned vis-à-vis the business can be a burden on the firm, make its strategic orientation difficult and might even result in the company’s demise as a family business (Grossmann and von Schlippe 2015). According to Hennerkes (2004: 58), disputes are the “greatest destroyers of value” in family businesses.