IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/kap/jinten/v17y2019i2d10.1007_s10843-018-0226-7.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

How does family capital influence the resilience of family firms?

Author

Listed:
  • Imen Mzid

    (IHEC Sfax)

  • Nada Khachlouf

    (ICD Business School Paris)

  • Richard Soparnot

    (Group ESC Clermont)

Abstract

How does being a family business contribute to resilience in a turbulent business environment? We draw on the Sustainable Family Business Theory (SFBT) to highlight the role of family capital (human, social, and financial capital) in the resilience of a sample of family firms. We collected data through semi-structured interviews with managers of four Tunisian family firms after the political revolution between 2011 and 2014, which triggered economic instability and business discontinuities. Organizational agility and resilience consequently became vital. We find that social capital of family firms, which may be composed of local and/or international contacts, contributes the most to firms’ ability to absorb shocks, reallocate existing resources, and internalize practices that allow firms to cope with future disturbances. We also find that financial capital is largely determined by social capital and human capital of family firms. Our research contributes to the family business resilience literature by showing how developing resilience at an individual level (social capital) fosters organizational level (family business) resilience. The interactions between the three dimensions of social capital are particularly interesting for sustainable family business theorists. We show that financial capital mediates the impact of human and social capital in order to strengthen firms’ resilience. Our research also has implications for the international entrepreneurship literature: we found that international contacts provide family businesses in crisis with strong social support together with access to strategic opportunities at the local level. Future research could focus on the direct and indirect impacts of several dimensions of family capital in order to test which configuration of family capital leads to the greatest resilience. Studies could also further explore the impact of the network of international contacts in the strategic renewal of resilient family firms by identifying international opportunities.

Suggested Citation

  • Imen Mzid & Nada Khachlouf & Richard Soparnot, 2019. "How does family capital influence the resilience of family firms?," Journal of International Entrepreneurship, Springer, vol. 17(2), pages 249-277, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:jinten:v:17:y:2019:i:2:d:10.1007_s10843-018-0226-7
    DOI: 10.1007/s10843-018-0226-7
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s10843-018-0226-7
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1007/s10843-018-0226-7?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Kathryn Stafford & Vibha Bhargava & Sharon Danes & George Haynes & Katherine Brewton, 2010. "Factors Associated with Long-Term Survival of Family Businesses: Duration Analysis," Journal of Family and Economic Issues, Springer, vol. 31(4), pages 442-457, December.
    2. Martina Musteen & Deepak K. Datta & Marcus M. Butts, 2014. "Do International Networks and Foreign Market Knowledge Facilitate SME Internationalization? Evidence from the Czech Republic," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 38(4), pages 749-774, July.
    3. Feranita, Feranita & Kotlar, Josip & De Massis, Alfredo, 2017. "Collaborative innovation in family firms: Past research, current debates and agenda for future research," Journal of Family Business Strategy, Elsevier, vol. 8(3), pages 137-156.
    4. Pankaj C. Patel & James O. Fiet, 2011. "Knowledge Combination and the Potential Advantages of Family Firms in Searching for Opportunities," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 35(6), pages 1179-1197, November.
    5. Cynthia A. Lengnick-Hall & Tammy E. Beck, 2009. "Resilience Capacity and Strategic Agility: Prerequisites for Thriving in a Dynamic Environment," Working Papers 0059, College of Business, University of Texas at San Antonio.
    6. Marlys K. Christianson & Maria T. Farkas & Kathleen M. Sutcliffe & Karl E. Weick, 2009. "Learning Through Rare Events: Significant Interruptions at the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad Museum," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 20(5), pages 846-860, October.
    7. Harris, Simon & Wheeler, Colin, 2005. "Entrepreneurs' relationships for internationalization: functions, origins and strategies," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 14(2), pages 187-207, April.
    8. Jody Hoffer Gittell & Kim Cameron & Sandy Lim & Victor Rivas, 2005. "Relationships, Layoffs, and Organizational Resilience: Airline Industry Responses to September 11," EERI Research Paper Series EERI_RP_2005_06, Economics and Econometrics Research Institute (EERI), Brussels.
    9. Stafford, Kathryn & Danes, Sharon M. & Haynes, George W., 2013. "Long-term family firm survival and growth considering owning family adaptive capacity and federal disaster assistance receipt," Journal of Family Business Strategy, Elsevier, vol. 4(3), pages 188-200.
    10. Peter J. Lane & Michael Lubatkin, 1998. "Relative absorptive capacity and interorganizational learning," Post-Print hal-02311860, HAL.
    11. Lindstrand, Angelika & Melén, Sara & Nordman, Emilia Rovira, 2011. "Turning social capital into business: A study of the internationalization of biotech SMEs," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 20(2), pages 194-212, April.
    12. Eric Gedajlovic & Michael Carney, 2010. "Markets, Hierarchies, and Families: Toward a Transaction Cost Theory of the Family Firm," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 34(6), pages 1145-1172, November.
    13. David G. Sirmon & Michael A. Hitt, 2003. "Managing Resources: Linking Unique Resources, Management, and Wealth Creation in Family Firms," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 27(4), pages 339-358, October.
    14. Gretchen Spreitzer & Kathleen Sutcliffe & Jane Dutton & Scott Sonenshein & Adam M. Grant, 2005. "A Socially Embedded Model of Thriving at Work," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 16(5), pages 537-549, October.
    15. Jean‐Luc Arregle & Michael A. Hitt & David G. Sirmon & Philippe Very, 2007. "The Development of Organizational Social Capital: Attributes of Family Firms," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 44(1), pages 73-95, January.
    16. Allison W. Pearson & Jon C. Carr & John C. Shaw, 2008. "Toward a Theory of Familiness: A Social Capital Perspective," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 32(6), pages 949-969, November.
    17. Kiss, Andreea N. & Danis, Wade M., 2008. "Country institutional context, social networks, and new venture internationalization speed," European Management Journal, Elsevier, vol. 26(6), pages 388-399, December.
    18. Ivan M. Manev & Tatiana S. Manolova, 2010. "Entrepreneurship In Transitional Economies: Review And Integration Of Two Decades Of Research," Journal of Developmental Entrepreneurship (JDE), World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd., vol. 15(01), pages 69-99.
    19. Paul D Ellis, 2011. "Social ties and international entrepreneurship: Opportunities and constraints affecting firm internationalization," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 42(1), pages 99-127, January.
    20. Brewton, Katherine E. & Danes, Sharon M. & Stafford, Kathryn & Haynes, George W., 2010. "Determinants of rural and urban family firm resilience," Journal of Family Business Strategy, Elsevier, vol. 1(3), pages 155-166, September.
    21. Francesco Chirico & Carlo Salvato, 2016. "Knowledge Internalization and Product Development in Family Firms: When Relational and Affective Factors Matter," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 40(1), pages 201-229, January.
    22. Pramodita Sharma & Carlo Salvato, 2011. "Commentary: Exploiting and Exploring New Opportunities over Life Cycle Stages of Family Firms," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 35(6), pages 1199-1205, November.
    23. Jean-Luc Arrègle & Michael Hitt & David Sirmon & Philippe Véry, 2007. "The Development of Organizational Social Capital : Attributes of Family Firms," Post-Print hal-02312687, HAL.
    24. Gulsun Altintas & Isabelle Royer, 2009. "Renforcement de la résilience par un apprentissage post-crise : étude longitudinale sur deux périodes de turbulence," Post-Print halshs-00703449, HAL.
    25. Patricio Duran & Nadine Kammerlander & Marc van Essen & Thomas Zellweger, 2016. "Doing More with Less : Innovation Input and Output in Family Firms," Post-Print hal-02276703, HAL.
    26. Pramodita Sharma, 2008. "Commentary: Familiness: Capital Stocks and Flows between Family and Business," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 32(6), pages 971-977, November.
    27. Sharon M. Danes & Katherine E. Brewton, 2012. "Follow the Capital: Benefits of Tracking Family Capital Across Family and Business Systems," International Studies in Entrepreneurship, in: ALAN CARSRUD & Malin Brännback (ed.), Understanding Family Businesses, chapter 0, pages 227-250, Springer.
    28. Lucie Bégin & Didier Chabaud, 2010. "La résilience des organisations. Le cas d'une entreprise familiale," Revue française de gestion, Lavoisier, vol. 0(1), pages 127-142.
    29. Xiaohong He, 2009. "The Development Of Entrepreneurship And Private Enterprise In The People'S Republic Of China And Its Relevance To Transitional Economies," Journal of Developmental Entrepreneurship (JDE), World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd., vol. 14(01), pages 39-58.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Satoshi KAWAKATSU & Tomoki SEKIGUCHI, 2022. "The development and reconceptualization of entrepreneurial resilience," Discussion papers e-22-002, Graduate School of Economics , Kyoto University.
    2. Mustafa Ozguven & Chong Yan Gao & Mohamed Yacine Si Tayeb, 2021. "The Utilization of Autoregressive Forecasting Models in Strategic Management," International Journal of Science and Business, IJSAB International, vol. 5(7), pages 170-185.
    3. María del Pilar Casado-Belmonte & María de las Mercedes Capobianco-Uriarte & Rubén Martínez-Alonso & María J. Martínez-Romero, 2021. "Delineating the Path of Family Firm Innovation: Mapping the Scientific Structure," Review of Managerial Science, Springer, vol. 15(8), pages 2455-2499, November.
    4. Maria Vincenza Ciasullo & Andrea Chiarini & Rocco Palumbo, 2024. "Mastering the interplay of organizational resilience and sustainability: Insights from a hybrid literature review," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 33(2), pages 1418-1446, February.
    5. Christina Guenther & Maksim Belitski & Nada Rejeb, 2023. "Overcoming the ability-willingness paradox in small family firms’ collaborations," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 60(4), pages 1409-1429, April.
    6. Espeche, José Francisco Tragant & Sacristán-Navarro, María & Zúñiga-Vicente, José Ángel & Crespo, Nuno Fernandes, 2023. "Innovation and internationalisation during times of economic growth, crisis, and recovery prior to Covid-19: A configurational approach comparing Spanish manufacturing family and non-family firms," Journal of Family Business Strategy, Elsevier, vol. 14(1).
    7. Nay Chi Khin Khin Oo & Sirisuhk Rakthin, 2022. "Integrative Review of Absorptive Capacity’s Role in Fostering Organizational Resilience and Research Agenda," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(19), pages 1-27, October.
    8. Carlos de las Heras-Rosas & Juan Herrera, 2020. "Family Firms and Sustainability. A Longitudinal Analysis," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(13), pages 1-27, July.
    9. Curtis, Kynda R. & Slocum, Susan L., 2022. "Research Report: Firm Resiliency Post-Economic Shock: A Case Study of Rural Wineries during the COVID-19 Pandemic," Journal of Food Distribution Research, Food Distribution Research Society, vol. 53(1), March.
    10. Alexander Tabares & Yanto Chandra & Claudia Alvarez & Manuela Escobar-Sierra, 2021. "Opportunity-related behaviors in international entrepreneurship research: a multilevel analysis of antecedents, processes, and outcomes," International Entrepreneurship and Management Journal, Springer, vol. 17(1), pages 321-368, March.

    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. Victoria Antin Yates & James M. Vardaman & James J. Chrisman, 2023. "Social network research in the family business literature: a review and integration," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 60(4), pages 1323-1345, April.
    2. Zybura, Jan & Zybura, Nora & Ahrens, Jan-Philipp & Woywode, Michael, 2021. "Innovation in the post-succession phase of family firms: Family CEO successors and leadership constellations as resources," Journal of Family Business Strategy, Elsevier, vol. 12(2).
    3. Gema García-Piqueres & Ana-M. Serrano-Bedia & Marta Pérez-Pérez, 2019. "Knowledge Management Practices and Innovation Outcomes: The Moderating Role of Risk-Taking and Proactiveness," Administrative Sciences, MDPI, vol. 9(4), pages 1-22, September.
    4. Daspit, Joshua J. & Long, Rebecca G. & Pearson, Allison W., 2019. "How familiness affects innovation outcomes via absorptive capacity: A dynamic capability perspective of the family firm," Journal of Family Business Strategy, Elsevier, vol. 10(2), pages 133-143.
    5. Martina Musteen & Deepak K. Datta & Marcus M. Butts, 2014. "Do International Networks and Foreign Market Knowledge Facilitate SME Internationalization? Evidence from the Czech Republic," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 38(4), pages 749-774, July.
    6. Herrero, Inés & Hughes, Mathew & Larrañeta, Bárbara, 2022. "Is blood thicker than water? Exploring the impact of family firms’ familial social relations with other firms within their industries," Journal of Family Business Strategy, Elsevier, vol. 13(3).
    7. Barros, Ismael & Hernangómez, Juan & Martin-Cruz, Natalia, 2016. "A theoretical model of strategic management of family firms. A dynamic capabilities approach," Journal of Family Business Strategy, Elsevier, vol. 7(3), pages 149-159.
    8. Sanchez-Famoso, Valeriano & Pittino, Daniel & Chirico, Francesco & Maseda, Amaia & Iturralde, Txomin, 2019. "Social capital and innovation in family firms: The moderating roles of family control and generational involvement," Scandinavian Journal of Management, Elsevier, vol. 35(3).
    9. Sherlock, Chelsea & Dibrell, Clay & Memili, Esra, 2023. "The impact of family commitment on firm innovativeness: The mediating role of resource stocks," Journal of Family Business Strategy, Elsevier, vol. 14(3).
    10. Stafford, Kathryn & Danes, Sharon M. & Haynes, George W., 2013. "Long-term family firm survival and growth considering owning family adaptive capacity and federal disaster assistance receipt," Journal of Family Business Strategy, Elsevier, vol. 4(3), pages 188-200.
    11. Lorenzo Ardito & Antonio Messeni Petruzzelli & Federica Pascucci & Enzo Peruffo, 2019. "Inter‐firm R&D collaborations and green innovation value: The role of family firms' involvement and the moderating effects of proximity dimensions," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 28(1), pages 185-197, January.
    12. Kyuho Jin & Joowon Lee & Sung Min Hong, 2021. "The Dark Side of Managing for the Long Run: Examining When Family Firms Create Value," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(7), pages 1-20, March.
    13. Fernando Muñoz-Bullón & Maria J. Sanchez-Bueno & Alfredo De Massis, 2020. "Combining Internal and External R&D: The Effects on Innovation Performance in Family and Nonfamily Firms," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 44(5), pages 996-1031, September.
    14. Sami Basly & Amira Hammouda, 2020. "Family Businesses and Digital Entrepreneurship Adoption: A Conceptual Model," Journal of Entrepreneurship and Innovation in Emerging Economies, Entrepreneurship Development Institute of India, vol. 29(2), pages 326-364, September.
    15. Datta, Subhadeep & Mukherjee, Sourjo, 2022. "In families we trust: Family firm branding and consumer’s reaction to product harm crisis," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 151(C), pages 257-268.
    16. Sondos G. Abdelgawad & Shaker A. Zahra, 2020. "Family Firms’ Religious Identity and Strategic Renewal," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 163(4), pages 775-787, May.
    17. Dawson, Alexandra & Mussolino, Donata, 2014. "Exploring what makes family firms different: Discrete or overlapping constructs in the literature?," Journal of Family Business Strategy, Elsevier, vol. 5(2), pages 169-183.
    18. McGuire, Jean & Dow, Sandra & Ibrahim, Bakr, 2012. "All in the family? Social performance and corporate governance in the family firm," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 65(11), pages 1643-1650.
    19. Mazzi, Chiara, 2011. "Family business and financial performance: Current state of knowledge and future research challenges," Journal of Family Business Strategy, Elsevier, vol. 2(3), pages 166-181.
    20. Francesco Aiello & Paola Cardamone & Lidia Mannarino & Valeria Pupo, 2021. "Does external R&D matter for family firm innovation? Evidence from the Italian manufacturing industry," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 57(4), pages 1915-1930, December.

    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:kap:jinten:v:17:y:2019:i:2:d:10.1007_s10843-018-0226-7. 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: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.springer.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.