Business, Enterprise & Management
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Item Consciously contributing: Community engagement, philanthropy and family business(Routledge, 2022-04-08) Seaman, Claire; Bent, Richard; Seaman, ClaireCorporate citizenship is an area of the current study that considers, amongst other things, how the values of a business translate into socially responsible behaviour. Conversely, corporate citizenship can also consider the values individuals bring into the business and the impact these values may have on business behaviour. This chapter focuses on family business, taking the perspective that where the values of one family are concentrated in the leadership of a business, those values will tend to exert more influence on business behaviour, for good or ill. Family businesses vary widely in size, in sector of operation and indeed in the values they hold but family businesses are also astonishingly numerous and of considerable economic importance. Whilst there is an ongoing definitional debate, a consensus has been reached within the literature that somewhere between 65% and 80% of businesses are owned, managed, or led by family. Family businesses form the economic bedrock of economies and communities worldwide and their impact on corporate citizenship is therefore substantial. In considering how a research agenda for this area might be developed, this chapter seeks to advance thinking and to provoke both debate and ongoing research.Item Human determinants influencing the digital transformation strategy of multigenerational family businesses: A multiple-case study of five French growth-oriented family firms(Emerald, 2021-05-14) Ano, Blandine; Bent, RichardPurpose In a context of technological disruption, companies face a digital imperative to adopt successfully emerging new technologies. While family firms have a huge potential for growth and innovation, they may – due to idiosyncratic but often limited resources, have to address the complex challenges induced by digital technologies introduction. The purpose of this paper is to explore how human and cultural resources influence the formulation and implementation of five French family firms' digital strategy.Item The role of vision in determining family, small business and minority ethnic business research(Edward Elgar, 2020-09-04) Seaman, Claire; Bent, Richard; Calabro, AndreaFamily business and migration pre-date written history and yet are relatively young fields of research, which has to some extent evolved in parallel with the fields of small business research and minority ethnic entrepreneurship. In practice, however, the strands often overlap and contain common issues and challenges, this overlap provides a hinterland currently not fully explored and contextualized within research. Drawing together current research from the three fields, this chapter will highlight and conceptualize the overlaps as a working model for future analysis and highlight a number of key areas for future research. This sometime artificial distinction is especially important where research is developed into practice. The development of appropriate support systems through formal and informal networks is a key priority for communities, economies and the success of the family themselves.Item Extending cross-gender succession theories: Mother–son succession in family business(Emerald, 2018-12-10) Seaman, Claire; Ross, Susanne; Bent, Richard; Higgins, David; Jones, Paul; McGowan, PauricThe importance of succession in family business is well documented and there is general agreement that successful succession represents a key factor in the success or otherwise of individual businesses owned and run by families. The importance of gender in family business succession is a much more recent topic, where initial work has focussed very much on the increasing tendency for women to take on the family business as a successor. Far less research, however, considers the scenario where a female leader passes on the business, whether that takes the form of family succession, a new leader from out with the family or indeed business sale. This dearth of research is not entirely surprising: whilst female leaders in a family business context are not new, their numbers have been relatively small and often mediated through the lens of co-preneurship with a male partner. As women increasingly succeed to and found family businesses however, the gender dimension within family business succession develops and the research response forms the basis for this chapter.Item Business internet use in small, family owned and managed hotels in Scotland(Inderscience, 2020-02-05) Fyfe, Jo; Seaman, Claire; Bent, RichardTourism and thus hospitality is a key strategic priority for the Scottish Government which in many communities is still highly dependent on small, family owned and managed hotels. This exploratory study is designed to initiate dialogue and to explore the complexity of the operating environment and perceived business support needs in the ever-more complex and dynamic e-environment. The development of the internet has altered the manner in which the hospitality industry operates; offering global marketing opportunities, open-source review sites and perhaps crucially the opportunity to interact with and sell directly to the consumer. Results indicate that the positive aspects of the internet were perceived to outweigh the disadvantages; however, the learning challenges identified were primarily around the effective management of on-line resources and global reputation. The vital role of small family owned and managed hotels in the development of a coherent tourism offering for Scotland is acknowledged here and can be additionally allied to geography. There are areas in Scotland, and indeed much of the world, that draw tourists yet are not sufficiently populous to host hotel chains or even specialist boutique hotels. In part, the reason tourists are drawn to those areas is precisely their relatively undeveloped nature, yet this creates a challenge for business learning within small independent hotels.Item Seduced into the Family Business: editorial(Emerald, 2010) Seaman, Claire; Graham, Stuart; Bent, RichardItem Selling the Family Name? Family Businesses, Retail and Branding(2015) Seaman, Claire; Bent, RichardItem Family Business Ancestries(2014) Seaman, Claire; Bent, Richard; di Belmonte, S.Item The role of family values in the integrity of family business(Routledge, 2017-07-06) Seaman, Claire; Bent, Richard; Orlitzky, Marc; Manjit, MongaThis chapter proposes that the combined influence of a number of different family members may contribute to the development of business integrity and would usefully merit further research. Family businesses form a cornerstone of the economies of most developed countries and appear to provide a degree of community and social stability. The importance of business integrity is relatively widely acknowledged and indeed has generated a certain media profile in recent years, defining business integrity has provoked some debate. Family business values initially received scant attention in family business research that, in its early stages, focused heavily on economic contribution, definitional challenges, and the interactional systems between the family and the business. The initial modeling work carried out by Patrick and Quinn regarded business integrity as an intangible strategic asset, viewing the integrity capacity as part of the process for continual process alignment that achieves balanced judgment.Item Over the hedge: hidden networks in knowledge transfer(Inderscience, 2012-12) Bent, Richard; Seaman, Claire; Welsh, Rita; Pretious, MikeThis paper develops the Edinburgh knowledge hedge (Bent et al., 2010) to introduce the largely hidden role formal and informal networks in the process of linking SMEs and business support agencies, presenting a model to assist in identifying remaining barriers to knowledge exchange. The model is applied to a detailed case study of primary business support experience, laying the foundation for practical and theoretical developments. It is proposed that the model will provide a basis for future qualitative research in this area. A conceptual framework is developed to capture the complexity of knowledge exchange between SMEs and business support agencies and providers. Within the case study SME owners and business advisors identify areas not resolved by formal/informal networks, aiding the development of case specific strategies to get both parties 'over the hedge'.