South Africa has a social capital economic system that establishes various opportunities for individuals to start their own businesses, this creates a climate for entrepreneurs to explore the business market and start their own business. If family businesses are that important and fundamental to the sustainability of countries it is definitely relevant to asses and monitor these businesses over a wide range of issues. The field of this study falls within the subject discipline of entrepreneurship and focuses on gaining insight into small and medium-sized family businesses. The study has not restricted to a particular trade and all participants who fall under the definition of Ibrahim and Ellis (2004: 5) have been recognised to take part in this study. In this study the author set out to determine the causes affecting the success of family businesses, as well as identifying a few variables that had to be measured to better understand their impact and influence on the success of family businesses. The author also examined other aspects regarding the subject, in order to get a better understanding concerning family businesses, and to understand what they have to offer. The definition that has been used in this study is supplied, as well as the advantages and disadvantages regarding family businesses. This has been done to ensure that the researcher understand what type of business constitutes a family business. The empirical study has been conducted by means of a field study, using a structured questionnaire as the main component. The purpose of the literature review was to gain insight into selected determinants of family business success, according to a structured questionnaire developed by Prof. Stephan van der Merwe (NWU). / MBA (Business Administration), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2015

Family businesses have unique dynamics and success stories but at the same time face unique challenges. Intergenerational small and medium-sized family businesses in South Africa play an increasingly important role in creating jobs together with wealth distribution. This study attempts to explore the complicated relationship and inimitable characteristics of family business surroundings against the added challenges of family business perceived success and family business continuity. Notwithstanding family businesses being a prevalent phenomenon in the economies of most countries, insight into this form of enterprise is still limited. Topics such as commitment, entrepreneurial orientation, job satisfaction, satisfaction with life and perceived success of the family business, among others, were investigated. In order to achieve the primary objective of this study, a survey was undertaken using a structured questionnaire. The reliability of the questionnaire was determined by calculating the Cronbach alpha coefficient, which indicated that the questionnaire used in this study conformed to the criteria of acceptable reliability and can be regarded as internally consistent. The survey yielded 143 usable questionnaires from 42 family businesses restricted to Gauteng province and the North West province in South Africa. The nature of this study was investigative and descriptive statistics was therefore used to analyse the statements of all the participating respondents. The selected determinants influencing the perceived success of small and medium-sized family business was then measured and regressional analyses were further conducted. Conclusions were drawn from this study on the outcomes of the selected factors influencing the perceived success of small and medium-sized family business. Finally, a critical evaluation was done and practical recommendations are suggested to improve family business wellness and, subsequently, increase the sustainability of such business. / MBA, North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2015

South Africa has a social capital economic system that establishes various opportunities for individuals to start their own businesses, this creates a climate for entrepreneurs to explore the business market and start their own business. If family businesses are that important and fundamental to the sustainability of countries it is definitely relevant to asses and monitor these businesses over a wide range of issues. The field of this study falls within the subject discipline of entrepreneurship and focuses on gaining insight into small and medium-sized family businesses. The study has not restricted to a particular trade and all participants who fall under the definition of Ibrahim and Ellis (2004: 5) have been recognised to take part in this study. In this study the author set out to determine the causes affecting the success of family businesses, as well as identifying a few variables that had to be measured to better understand their impact and influence on the success of family businesses. The author also examined other aspects regarding the subject, in order to get a better understanding concerning family businesses, and to understand what they have to offer. The definition that has been used in this study is supplied, as well as the advantages and disadvantages regarding family businesses. This has been done to ensure that the researcher understand what type of business constitutes a family business. The empirical study has been conducted by means of a field study, using a structured questionnaire as the main component. The purpose of the literature review was to gain insight into selected determinants of family business success, according to a structured questionnaire developed by Prof. Stephan van der Merwe (NWU). / MBA (Business Administration), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2015

In the 21st century, family businesses around the world face significant challenges and plentiful opportunities. The growth and survival of family firms depends on their ability to address these challenges, capitalise on their strengths, and take advantage of the opportunities facing them. The family business literature is rich in the experiences of Americans, Koreans, Swedes and many other nationalities, cultures and religions around the world, but there is a paucity of documented evidence that relates to the Arab world. This study adds a new and important specific contribution to the literature by addressing the field of family businesses in the Arab world, and Abu Dhabi in particular. The thesis concentrates on large family firms which have their headquarters in Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates. The main reason for this choice is pragmatic; the researcher has far greater access to the principals (CEO’s and Chairmen in particular) of Abu Dhabi based family firms than those headquartered elsewhere. This thesis identifies major themes which will influence the future development of family firms in Abu Dhabi in the medium term (taken to mean up to 2030, the period covered by the Abu Dhabi Vision). The research design chosen is an exploratory one. It does not seek to make predictions concerning the future of family firms in Abu Dhabi but attempts to explain the phenomenon of family firms in Abu Dhabi to the extent that explanation helps shed light on possible alternative strategies which such firms might need to adopt if they are to continue to prosper. The research relies heavily on expert interviews. Such a strategy is warranted by the dearth of published data of any sort. This research also makes a useful contribution to our understanding of family firms in general. By concentrating on a hitherto under-researched context, the study adds to our overall understanding by broadening the range of comparative studies of family firms which are available to other researchers.

Syftet med denna studie var att undersöka upplevelsen av stödet som ges till familjehem via en konsulentstödd verksamhet. Frågorna för studien var hur familjehemsföräldrarna och personalen upplever stödet. Tre familjehemskonsulenter och två familjehemsföräldrar intervjuades. Med en kvalitativ metod och en fenomenologisk inriktning kunde upplevelsen av konsulentstödet studeras. För att få en förståelse för intervjumaterialet användes två olika analys perspektiv i form av systemteorin och utvecklingsekologin. Resultatet visade i likhet med tidigare forskning att viktiga delar i stödet var tillgänglighet, information, relationer, utbildning, handledning och träffar med andra familjehem. Resultatet visade att båda familjehemsföräldrarna i studien var nöjda med konsulentstödet överlag. I studien framkom dock att verksamheten inte kunde erbjuda nya familjehem utbildning innan en första placering görs vilket familjehemsföräldrarna framhävde som väsentligt. Verksamheten hade även sämre möjligheter att erbjuda en bra kontinuerlig utbildning i form av föreläsningar. Studiens resultat tillsammans med tidigare forskning visade även att upplevelsen av ett bristande nätverk finns hos familjehemsföräldrar. / The purpose of this study was to investigate the experience of the support given to the family home through a consultant supported activities. The questions for the study was how the foster parents and staff feel the support. Three family advisers and two foster parents were interviewed. With a qualitative method and a phenomenological focus could be the experience of consultant support are studied. To get an understanding of the interviews, two different analytical perspectives in the form of systems theory and the development of ecology. The results showed, as in previous research that the key elements in supporting the accessibility, information, relationships, training, tutorial and meet with other foster homes. The results showed that both the foster parents in the study were satisfied with consultant support overall. The study showed, however, that the business could offer new foster training before an initial investment made which foster parents mattered significantly. Operations were also less able to offer a good continuous education in the form of lectures. The study's results together with previous research also showed that the perception of a lack of available network of foster parents.

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<p>This study puts special attention on how family businesses can create a unique context for entrepreneurship through its internal resources and how they can create wealth across gen-erations. These internal resources are called “familiness” that is generated by the interaction of the family and individual family members with the business. In order for the family business to be transgenerational (to create wealth across generations), they must develop their familiness and the culture must encourage family firms to be constantly involved in entrepreneurial activities.</p><p>In this thesis, the internal resources of a family firm were analyzed in order to help the company understand the requirements of a transgenerational business. The familiness that were assessed in the family business are, as suggested by Habbershon (2006), network, tacit knowledge, access to financial capital, decision making, business portfolio, mentoring rela-tionship, and culture.</p><p>As a result of the analysis, we conclude that the family firm has a positive bundle of famili-ness that can be used in order for the company to be more entrepreneurial. However, it is not enough to have a positive bundle of familiness that could encourage entrepreneurship; but also, the family members should have the psychological predisposition to allocate re-sources in the hope of finding entrepreneurial gain (Penrose, 1959).</p><p>This study ends up with the recommendations that are useful in order to understand the requirements of a transgenerational family business.</p>

<p>Abstract</p><p>Background:</p><p>Goals and goal-setting are two aspects that occur everyday in business life however little is known about the effect of strategic goal-setting. To a cer-tain extent, this affects all of us either directly or indirectly, everyday through strategic decisions that are made by business managers all around the world. A company’s performance of a company can be measured in many ways. A firm’s performance can be financially successful if the com-pany’s strategy is well planned. Strategic planning consists of developing goal-strategies, which aim at contributing to the firm’s performance.</p><p>Problem:</p><p>A small business manager’s view on the goals-setting strategies is important since the manager in a small company can influence the business more than compared to a manager in a larger firm. As the personality differs among managers, the level of planning and proactiveness would differ as well. Sev-eral studies have focused on the relationship between goal-setting and per-formance but the level of proactiveness has not been has not been consid-ered to a larger extent.</p><p>Purpose: The purpose of this thesis is to investigate managers’ goal-setting strategies, focusing on goal-specificy, planning, proactiveness, and financial perform-ance in small businesses in the Jönköping region, Sweden.</p><p>Method:</p><p>To fulfill the purpose of this thesis both qualitative and quantitative re-search approaches have been used. As 173 interviews were already carried out in an earlier study, we created a strategy on how to use the collected in-terview data. Theories from different research areas were combined with hypotheses to create a framework for this paper. The theories and the hy-potheses were analyzed in light of the empirical evidence, the interview and we used the SPSS to test our hypotheses.</p><p>Result:</p><p>The results from the first three hypotheses were not found to be too unex-pected as we assumed that planning, the level of goal-specificy and proac-tiveness to a large extent, depend on a managers’ strategies and ambitions. The final two hypotheses have helped us discover new patterns and add to previous theories. We have made two main contributions by conducting this master thesis. The first one is that a high degree of planning does not imply a higher level of financial performance. The second one is that family businesses do not show a lesser degree of planning compared to non-family businesses.</p>

<p><strong>Introduction:</strong> Research has shown that family firms play an important role in modern economies and that they maintain special characteristics and features in comparison to non-family businesses. Furthermore, it is evident in literature and practice that internationalization is a crucial process and strategy in the present global business environment.</p><p><strong>Problem:</strong> These findings however, have not led to a family business internationalization strategy. Only some studies have been conducted concerning the influence of the special features of family firms on the process of internationalization. This means that there is a gap between theory and practice.</p><p><strong>Purpose:</strong> To increase the academic understanding of the phenomenon internationalization of family businesses, through the use of both theoretical and empirical findings.</p><p><strong>Research questions:</strong> This study attempted to fulfill the purpose by providing answers to several research questions. The main research questions are: What is the current state of knowledge about internationalization, family business features and previous research in internationalization of family firms? How do the family business features theoretically influence the internationalization process? How do the family business features empirically influence the internationalization process? What are the theoretical contributions and practical managerial implications of these findings?</p><p><strong>Method:</strong> A solid literature research has been conducted in order to determine the theoretical influences of family business features on internationalization. The empirical testing of the expectations was conducted through a qualitative approach by taking personal interviews at eight companies, four in The Netherlands and four in Sweden, and studying secondary documentation.</p><p><strong>Findings:</strong> The study shows that it is difficult to decisively determine the either facilitating or constraining influence of family business features on internationalization. The results show that the 23 features which have been studied in the sample are facilitating or constraining under certain conditions (see table 5, p. 108). This implies that managers, researchers and consultants will be required to study these conditions first in order to determine the facilitating or constraining effects in a company. In addition, a model has been constructed illustrating the empirical findings concerning the internationalization process (see figure 8, p.112). Finally, concerning internationalization theories, it is determined that family businesses tend to use the Network approach in starting their internationalization process, the Stage approaches in further developing the international operations and support their process through the Resource-based view and the Knowledge-based view.</p>

Family businesses are the backbone of the German economy and, indeed, of almost all economies in the world. Every year business owners face many challenges, one of which is the succession process. Unfortunately, daughters are often considered or perceived as less suitable or viable choice for the position of a successor, compared to sons. The aim of the master thesis is to identify potential challenges a female successor faces when taking over a family business and whether various strategic and/or structural requirements need to be considered by the daughter within the succession process. Empirical data has been gathered within the methodological framework of the grounded theory. Semi-guided expert interviews have been conducted to gain empirical insights. The results indicate that the challenges each individual successor will experience as most crucial or difficult will always depend on her personal character, on the senior family mem bers’ behaviour during the succession process, and on the company ’s hand-over capability at the outset of the process. Moreover, the strategic and/or structural requirements the successor faces are not as much influenced by gender, as by the up- or out-dated circumstances of the existing strategies and structures of the family business, which will ultimately determine the requirements the daughter has to fulfil. In conclusion, the succession process is very complex and burdened with emotions from the family members. Having a clear road map for the succession that leaves room for improvement in case of unpredictable factors in advance can be essential for the success of the succession. Hiring an external expert as support can be beneficial as well. Additionally, the daughter aspiring to lead her fami ly’s company must be 100 % sure that her life’s vision is compatible with the vision of the family business.