Abstract

The intention to pass the control of the business to the next generation (i.e. intrafamily succession) is an important difference between family and nonfamily firms (Chua, Chrisman, & Sharma, 1999). Managing succession is one of the biggest problems faced by family businesses globally (Halkias et al., 2010). Fewer than one in three family businesses survive to the second generation, and less than one in twenty to the third generation. The future of family business is highly dependent on whether family business leaders find competent successors who are willing to take over their business. Interestingly, previous studies indicate that next-generation family members are often not necessarily interested in joining the family business (Zellweger, 2017). Given the ageing population and many family business leaders’ desire to retire and transfer their business to the members of the next generation, the low intention of the potential successors to continue the family business poses a huge challenge — not only for the family businesses but also for the economy (Garcia et al., 2019).