Eddy Laveren

Family Business Succession and Its Impact on Financial Structure and Performance

In this article the authors study the impact of a family business transfer on the financial structure and performance based on a sample of 152 small- to medium-sized businesses. The aim is to identify the effects of a succession by relying on panel data gathered over the period 1991 to 2006 resulting in more than 2,000 firm–year observations. The main findings are that a transfer from the first to the second generation negatively influences the debt rate of the company, whereas in successions between later generations this effect is reversed. With respect to firm growth, analyses indicate that in first-generation companies the growth rate decreases after the transition, whereas in next-generation firms no effect on the growth level can be identified. Finally, no evidence is found that a family firms profitability is affected by succession, which shows that a transfer should not necessarily be seen as a negative event in the life cycle of a family business.

Real versus Sample-Based Differences in Comparative Family Business Research

This article analyzes the impact of not controlling for “demographic sample” differences on research results in the area of comparative family/nonfamily business research. Using different statistical methods with and without control for “demographic sample” differences, the results show that controlling for these firm demographics in a bivariate as well as a multivariate framework is very important to discover “real” differences between family and nonfamily firms. We found “real” differences for export, budgeting, variable reward systems, profitability and gender, educational degree, and tenure of the CEO. Strategy, networking, long-term planning and control systems, perceived environmental uncertainty, growth, and management training, classified by prior empirical research as different between family and nonfamily firms, do not differ.

A Survey into the Use of Derivatives by Large Non-Financial Firms Operating in Belgium

Empirical evidence on the use of derivatives for risk management on the European continent is virtually non-existent. To fill this gap, our survey documents the usage of derivatives by non-financial large firms operating in Belgium. This paper provides descriptive evidence with respect to several questions that are raised in the literature. Why do firms hedge? Which financial risks are being managed? How widespread is the use of derivatives? Which derivatives are used for which purposes? How is a risk management policy implemented? How are performance measurement and reporting structured?

Intergenerational Differences in Family Firms: Impact on Capital Structure and Growth Behavior

Based on a sample of 425 SMEs, we investigate whether intergenerational differences affect the capital structure and growth behavior of family firms. We integrate the financing and growth relation into our research by using a 2SLS approach and the internal and sustainable growth concepts. Evidence is found that the capital structure is not directly influenced by the managing generation, but indirectly through the realized growth rate. Moreover, results indicate that next–generation companies grow slower because they have the tendency to forego part of their growth rather than risk the loss of family control due to the increased use of debt.

Growth persistence and profile robustness of high-growth firms

This paper analyses the persistence of high business growth and the robustness of the profile characteristics of high-growth firms (HGFs). By having company information for all firms that are active in Flanders (i.e., the northern part of Belgium) for a ten-year period (i.e., from 2000 to 2009), different subsets of HGFs were identified for different time periods. Several questions arise, such as whether the firms that were qualified as an HGF in a certain period were able to maintain the high growth rates for multiple (consecutive) periods and whether the profile characteristics of the HGF-subsets are stable over time. It appeared that the majority of the firms that were identified as an HGF in the period 2000–2009 were ‘one-shot HGFs’. Notwithstanding the rapidly changing composition of the subsets, the profile features of the HGFs in the subset remained relatively constant over time.

Family business succession and the impact of CEO experience on the growth of small family firms

The studies on the relationship between the depth of the entrepreneurs experience and firm growth shows inconsistent and inconclusive results. A comprehensive understanding of this matter is especially valuable in the context of family business successions, given that many companies seem to be unsuccessful in conquering the difficulties surrounding a succession. The reason is the fact that successors often lack experience when taking over the company. Based on a sample of 511 small family firms, our results suggest a positive and curvilinear effect of CEO experience on firm performance. Experience is contributive to the growth in value added up to a certain number of years that the CEO is in a CEO position, after which it becomes counterproductive. Firms with CEOs currently holding multiple directorships are also found to generate significantly higher performance levels and that growth rates appear to lessen according to the age of the CEO.

From "manager" to "strategist": An examination of the evolving role of persistent high-growth entrepreneurs (Published Online)

Purpose Few high-growth firms (HGFs) are able to maintain high-growth over time. The purpose of this paper is to find out why only a small number of firms become persistent HGFs, explicitly focusing on the role of the founding entrepreneur in this process. Design/methodology/approach Initially, 28 semi-structured interviews were performed with high-growth entrepreneurs to discover why so few founders could become persistent high-growth entrepreneurs. In a second phase, four case studies were conducted to uncover the factors that facilitate a swift evolution from the “managerial” role to the “strategic” role. Findings High-growth entrepreneurs, who quickly make a transition from a managerial role into a strategic role are more likely to keep their firm on its high-growth trajectory. This transition is made possible by: the early development of strategic skills; the presence of a high quality human capital base; and an organizational structure with characteristics from Mintzberg’s “machine bureaucracy.” Practical implications The results are vital for entrepreneurs of “one-shot” HGFs with the ambition to make their firm a “persistent” HGF. If high-growth rates are to be sustained, the three factors that emerged from the authors’ analysis should foster the delegation of managerial tasks, resulting in an easier transition toward a “strategic role.” Originality/value Insights are valuable as both founders and governmental institutions can benefit from knowing which factors contribute to a successful phase transition from “manager” to “strategist.”

Family control and innovativeness in private firms: the mediating role of board task performance

Purpose Although the majority of research explores the direct relationship between family control and innovativeness, the purpose of this paper is to investigate mediators that explain how family control is related to innovativeness. Grounded in agency theory, resource dependence theory, and the resource-based view of the firm, the authors suggest that this relationship operates through board task performance, that is, the level of directors’ involvement in control and service tasks. Design/methodology/approach To test the hypotheses, structural equation modeling is applied to cross-sectional survey data collected from 329 private firms that are located in Belgium. Family control is defined as 50 percent family ownership in combination with at least one family member being involved in the management or board of directors of the firm. Findings Four key results emerge from the analysis. First, family control is negatively associated with control task performance but does not affect service task performance. Second, control and service task performance positively influence innovativeness. Third, the negative relationship between family control and innovativeness is partially mediated by control task performance. Fourth, the presence of a family CEO and the percentage of family directors address heterogeneity among family controlled firms (FCFs). Originality/value This paper complements and extends existing research on the relationship between family control and innovativeness by adopting a governance perspective. The authors contribute to a deeper understanding of why FCFs are more or less innovative than nonfamily controlled firms and reveal underlying mechanisms previously uncovered.

Board Monitoring in a Privately Held Firm: When Does CEO Duality Matter? The Moderating Effect of Ownership

Drawing from agency theory and the attention‐based view of the firm, this study extends the understanding of the conditions under which CEO duality is negatively associated with board monitoring in a privately held firm context. Measuring monitoring in terms of board members’ involvement in behavioral control, output control, and strategy control tasks (Huse [Huse, M., 2005]), results show that CEO duality is significantly and negatively related only to the behavioral control task. In addition, we show that this negative effect is contingent on whether ownership is concentrated in the hands of a controlling shareholder as well as the type of controlling shareholder.

From “manager” to “strategist”: An examination of the evolving role of persistent high-growth entrepreneurs

Purpose Few high-growth firms (HGFs) are able to maintain high-growth over time. The purpose of this paper is to find out why only a small number of firms become persistent HGFs, explicitly focusing on the role of the founding entrepreneur in this process. Design/methodology/approach Initially, 28 semi-structured interviews were performed with high-growth entrepreneurs to discover why so few founders could become persistent high-growth entrepreneurs. In a second phase, four case studies were conducted to uncover the factors that facilitate a swift evolution from the “managerial” role to the “strategic” role. Findings High-growth entrepreneurs, who quickly make a transition from a managerial role into a strategic role are more likely to keep their firm on its high-growth trajectory. This transition is made possible by: the early development of strategic skills; the presence of a high quality human capital base; and an organizational structure with characteristics from Mintzberg’s “machine bureaucracy.” Practical implications The results are vital for entrepreneurs of “one-shot” HGFs with the ambition to make their firm a “persistent” HGF. If high-growth rates are to be sustained, the three factors that emerged from the authors’ analysis should foster the delegation of managerial tasks, resulting in an easier transition toward a “strategic role.” Originality/value Insights are valuable as both founders and governmental institutions can benefit from knowing which factors contribute to a successful phase transition from “manager” to “strategist.”