The board of directors as a part of family business governance – multilevel participation and board development

摘要

In this study, I examine the board of directors as a part of family business governance. Bothboards and governance have increased their attractiveness as a research topic lately. Researchon boards has concentrated mostly on the study of different board attributes, like composition,and the relationship of these attributes to the firm’s performance. Family business governancestudies are criticized for ignoring the multifaceted needs of companies. More researchobserving the context and contingencies affecting the governance and board of directorsis needed.The objective of this study is to clarify: 1) how the board participates in family business governance,and 2) how the board develops along with the firm’s and family’s development. Thestudy is implemented as qualitative research, and the longitudinal process approach has beenused as it provides the opportunity to examine development in context. Selection criteria forthe two cases selected for this study are: active board of directors, at least one implementedsuccession, and interviewees available from two generations and from different positions inthe firm. The data consists of interviews and secondary data, and it is collected from differentdata sources. The analysis was done selecting first some critical events from both cases tocloser examination, and analysing them by using content analysis technique.Several conclusions were drawn basing on the findings. First, the family business board participatesin the firm’s activities much more widely than it is customary to think. Second, thefamily business board is not a static part of the business, but it develops and it has to developfor different reasons. Third, ownership is not only the basis for the board’s activities or existence,but the relationship between the board and ownership is two-way. The board contributesto a large extent to the ownership decisions, and in this way to the management of ownership.Fourth, according to the cases, the board has many unrecognized possibilities to facilitatesuccession in family firms.