IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jadmsc/v14y2024i1p13-d1314952.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Managing Cultural Diversity and Conflict in Family Businesses: An Organizational Perspective

Author

Listed:
  • Tanja Gavrić

    (Faculty of Business Economics, University “VITEZ”, 72270 Travnik, Bosnia and Herzegovina)

  • Ivana Načinović Braje

    (Faculty of Economics & Business, University of Zagreb, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia)

Abstract

This study aims to investigate the occurrence of conflicts in family businesses, particularly focusing on their impact on founder behavior and organizational culture. Conducted in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the research employs a qualitative methodology to gain an in-depth understanding of conflicts within family businesses. The study utilizes semi-structured interviews as the primary data collection tool, engaging with 5 founders and 12 successors across various family owned businesses. The sample, comprising 17 participants, offers diverse perspectives on conflict dynamics between founders and successors. The interviews, designed to explore recurring key themes, delve into the nature and characteristics of task and process-based disagreements within these family enterprises. Key findings from this study include the observation that task or process-based disagreements, commonly arising between family members, can act as catalysts for founders to re-evaluate their behavior, potentially influencing the shaping of the organizational culture. The research highlights the importance of fostering a culture of open communication, critical thinking, and respect within family firms. Such a culture can play a significant role in reducing relationship conflicts and aid in reaching constructive resolutions. Additionally, the study reveals that the features of organizational culture within family businesses can be instrumental in managing conflicts effectively. This research underscores the complexity of family relationships in business settings and emphasizes the necessity of examining these dynamics from multiple angles. Given the prevalence of family members in key positions within family firms, the study sheds light on the importance of addressing diversity and conflict among family members, considering their long-term implications on the culture and future of these firms.

Suggested Citation

  • Tanja Gavrić & Ivana Načinović Braje, 2024. "Managing Cultural Diversity and Conflict in Family Businesses: An Organizational Perspective," Administrative Sciences, MDPI, vol. 14(1), pages 1-17, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jadmsc:v:14:y:2024:i:1:p:13-:d:1314952
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3387/14/1/13/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3387/14/1/13/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Cherchem, Naïma, 2017. "The relationship between organizational culture and entrepreneurial orientation in family firms: Does generational involvement matter?," Journal of Family Business Strategy, Elsevier, vol. 8(2), pages 87-98.
    2. Danny Miller & Isabelle Le Breton-Miller, 2021. "Family Firms: A Breed of Extremes?," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 45(4), pages 663-681, July.
    3. Manuel Carlos Vallejo-Martos, 2011. "The organizational culture of family firms as a key factor of competitiveness," Journal of Business Economics and Management, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 12(3), pages 451-481, May.
    4. Paul Westhead & Carole Howorth, 2007. "‘Types’ of private family firms: an exploratory conceptual and empirical analysis," Entrepreneurship & Regional Development, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 19(5), pages 405-431, September.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Carlos de las Heras-Rosas & Juan Herrera, 2020. "Family Firms and Sustainability. A Longitudinal Analysis," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(13), pages 1-27, July.
    2. Aparicio, Gloria & Basco, Rodrigo & Iturralde, Txomin & Maseda, Amaia, 2017. "An exploratory study of firm goals in the context of family firms: An institutional logics perspective," Journal of Family Business Strategy, Elsevier, vol. 8(3), pages 157-169.
    3. Debicki, Bart J. & Kellermanns, Franz W. & Chrisman, James J. & Pearson, Allison W. & Spencer, Barbara A., 2016. "Development of a socioemotional wealth importance (SEWi) scale for family firm research," Journal of Family Business Strategy, Elsevier, vol. 7(1), pages 47-57.
    4. Segaro, Ethiopia L. & Larimo, Jorma & Jones, Marian V., 2014. "Internationalisation of family small and medium sized enterprises: The role of stewardship orientation, family commitment culture and top management team," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 23(2), pages 381-395.
    5. Hadjielias, Elias & Christofi, Michael & Tarba, Shlomo, 2021. "Knowledge hiding and knowledge sharing in small family farms: A stewardship view," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 137(C), pages 279-292.
    6. Stockmans, Annelies & Lybaert, Nadine & Voordeckers, Wim, 2013. "The conditional nature of board characteristics in constraining earnings management in private family firms," Journal of Family Business Strategy, Elsevier, vol. 4(2), pages 84-92.
    7. Tensie Steijvers & Mervi Niskanen, 2013. "The determinants of cash holdings in private family firms," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 53(2), pages 537-560, June.
    8. Joern H. Block & Marcus Wagner, 2014. "The Effect of Family Ownership on Different Dimensions of Corporate Social Responsibility: Evidence from Large US Firms," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 23(7), pages 475-492, November.
    9. Burton, Nicholas & Vu, Mai Chi & Cruz, Allan Discua, 2022. "Our social legacy will go on: Understanding outcomes of family SME succession through engaged Buddhism," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 143(C), pages 105-118.
    10. Myriam Cano-Rubio & Guadalupe Fuentes-Lombardo & Valeriano Sanchez-Famoso, 2021. "Family involvement as influencer on family firm’s growth [L’influence de l’implication familière sur la croissance patronale]," Journal of International Entrepreneurship, Springer, vol. 19(4), pages 510-537, December.
    11. Spielmann, Nathalie & Discua Cruz, Allan & Tyler, Beverly B. & Cerrato, Daniele, 2022. "Signaling stewardship and the value of family in a brand heritage Identity: A cross-cultural study of wineries," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 153(C), pages 35-45.
    12. Basco, Rodrigo & Pérez Rodríguez, María José, 2011. "Ideal types of family business management: Horizontal fit between family and business decisions and the relationship with family business performance," Journal of Family Business Strategy, Elsevier, vol. 2(3), pages 151-165.
    13. Ferreira, João J. & Fernandes, Cristina I. & Schiavone, Francesco & Mahto, Raj V., 2021. "Sustainability in family business – A bibliometric study and a research agenda," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 173(C).
    14. Arz, Christopher, 2019. "Bridging the micro-macro gap: A multi-layer culture framework for understanding entrepreneurial orientation in family firms," Journal of Family Business Strategy, Elsevier, vol. 10(3), pages 1-1.
    15. Llach, Josep & Sanchez-Famoso, Valeriano & Danes, Sharon M., 2023. "Unmasking nonfamily employees’ complex contribution to family business performance: A place identity theory approach," Journal of Family Business Strategy, Elsevier, vol. 14(4).
    16. Hayward, Mathew & Hunt, Richard & Miller, Danny, 2022. "How vulnerability enriches family firm relationships: A social exchange perspective," Journal of Family Business Strategy, Elsevier, vol. 13(1).
    17. Patrice Charlier & Céline Duboys, 2011. "Gouvernance familiale et politique de distribution aux actionnaires," Revue Finance Contrôle Stratégie, revues.org, vol. 14(1), pages 5-31., March.
    18. Miruna Radu-Lefebvre & James Davis & William Gartner, 2024. "Legacy in Family Business: A Systematic Literature Review and Future Research Agenda," Post-Print hal-04515862, HAL.
    19. Alexandra Bertschi-Michel & Philipp Sieger & Thomas Wittig & Andreas Hack, 2023. "Sacrifice, Protect, and Hope for the Best: Family Ownership, Turnaround Moves, and Crisis Survival," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 47(4), pages 1132-1168, July.
    20. Jean–Luc Arregle & Lucia Naldi & Mattias Nordqvist & Michael A. Hitt, 2012. "Internationalization of Family–Controlled Firms: A Study of the Effects of External Involvement in Governance," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 36(6), pages 1115-1143, November.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jadmsc:v:14:y:2024:i:1:p:13-:d:1314952. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.