Publications

Find at Harvard

November 2004 (Revised September 2007)
Case

The Mitchell Family and Mitchells/Richards

By: Amy C. Edmondson, John A. Davis, Corey B. Hajim and Kelly Mulderry

Describes a small, luxury retail chain's operational sophistication achieved through the use of technology and "high-touch" customer service. A family-run business, Mitchells has built its success with a customer service strategy known internally as "hugging." The term... View Details

Keywords: Family Business; Customer Relationship Management; Knowledge Management; Service Delivery; Organizational Culture; Expansion; Information Technology; Retail Industry

Article

Family Control of Firms and Industries

We test what explains family control of firms and industries and find that the explanation is largely contingent on the identity of families and individual blockholders. Founders and their families are more likely to retain control when doing so gives the firm a... View Details

Keywords: Family Business; Cost vs Benefits; Governance Controls; Family Ownership; Business and Shareholder Relations; Competitive Advantage

Find at Harvard

Read Now

May 29, 2018
Article

Building Your Own Network When You're Part of a Family Business

By: Josh Baron and Judy Lin Walsh

Keywords: Networks; Family Business; Management Succession

September 26, 2022
Article

Is Your Family Office Built for the Future?

By: Josh Baron and Rob Lachenauer

Family offices can provide a number of benefits, including privacy, customization, and having your own team to handle a wide range of services, such as guiding family philanthropy, managing shared properties, or even managing household help. Successful principals in... View Details

Keywords: Business Offices; Family and Family Relationships

23 Apr 2001
Research & Ideas

The Gulf: It’s a Family Affair

A conversation with John Davis, author of "Challenges Facing Family Companies in the Gulf Region" Family Business Review, vol XIII, no. 3, September 2000. Q: Where... View Details

Keywords: by Wendy Guild & Andrea Schulman

2023
Working Paper

Trading Off Business and Family Investments: Evidence from U.S. Entrepreneurial Households

By: Olivia S Kim

Keywords: Downsizing; Small Business; Work-Life Balance; Household

August 2022
Case

One Tiger Per Mountain: The He Family Office

By: Lauren Cohen, Fei Wu and Grace Headinger

Roy He, founder and majority shareholder of his family construction material production company, was preparing to pass down the family business through its first generational handover to his children. His decision would establish his familial legacy and set a precedent... View Details

Keywords: Governance Structure; Family Business; Family Ownership; Strategic Planning; Family and Family Relationships; Leadership; Construction Industry; Canton (city, China); Canton (province, China); China

March 2023
Supplement

Ghassan E. Nuqul: Establishing the Core Values of a Family Business

By: Geoffrey Jones

October 1997
Background Note

Family Firms in the Newspaper Industry

Changes in newspaper publishing, specifically the introduction of new technology and concurrent changes in tax policy, which led to a consolidation of the industry are described. Also describes the transformation of family firms into public corporations in response to... View Details

Keywords: Business or Company Management; Family Business; Journalism and News Industry

Find at Harvard

21 Jan 2015
Lessons from the Classroom

Managing the Family Business: Market Basket’s Lessons About Buyouts

One of the highlights of my year is in November, when teams of enterprising families meet for the Executive Education program I founded and still lead at Harvard Business School, View Details

Keywords: Retail

12 Mar 2014
Lessons from the Classroom

Managing the Family Business: Firing the CEO

Editor's note: This is part of a series of occasional columns on managing the family business written by Senior Lecturer John A. Davis. In this article, Davis discusses when to make changes at the top. No... View Details

Research Summary

Overview

By: Christina R. Wing

Multi-generational wealth creation through family businesses and family offices. Leadership throughout the chapters of your life. View Details

Keywords: Family Business; Leadership; Succession Planning

30 Mar 2015
Research & Ideas

Managing the Family Business: Preparing to Sell

On important occasions, we gather for family portraits. If you were to take a picture of your family business today, what would it show? Family... View Details

Keywords: by Jonathan Pellegrin; Food & Beverage; Retail

July 2005
Case

Family Governance at the Cousin Consortium Stage

By: John A. Davis and Courtney Sampson

Explains the governance system for the Eddy family, who own the Port Blakely Companies. Provides the viewer with an inside look at the running of the family council and family assembly meetings. Also provides a brief history and overview of the forestry and real estate... View Details

Keywords: Conferences; Corporate Entrepreneurship; Corporate Governance; Business History; Business or Company Management; Family Ownership

February 2009 (Revised April 2011)
Module Note

Financing Growth in Family and Closely Held Firms

By: Belen Villalonga

This note describes the second of four modules in Financial Management of Family and Closely Held Firms, an elective MBA course at Harvard Business School. The note analyzes the pros and cons of different equity financing options that are available to family firms such... View Details

Keywords: Corporate Finance; Business Growth and Maturation

September 2024
Technical Note

Note on CEO Succession in Family Enterprises

By: Christina R. Wing, Kara A. Perusse and Hillary B. Sieber

This note aims to offer guidance and insights into navigating CEO succession, whether involving family or non-family executives, and emphasizes the importance of providing clarity on the criteria for selection. By understanding the nuances and best practices of CEO... View Details

Keywords: Family Business; Transition; Management Succession

October 2001 (Revised November 2001)
Case

Blethen Family and the Seattle Times Company (A), The

By: John A. Davis and Cathy Quinn

Frank Blethen, the fourth-generation publisher of The Seattle Times, ponders the challenges facing this family business. This case reviews the long history of this business and family and asks whether family ownership and management are in the interests of both the... View Details

Keywords: History; Management; Business or Company Management; Family Business; Family and Family Relationships; Family Ownership; Problems and Challenges; Journalism and News Industry; Media and Broadcasting Industry

13 Aug 2014
Lessons from the Classroom

Managing the Family Business: Entrepreneurs Needed for Long-Run Success

In the world of family business, the entrepreneurs we celebrate are usually founders of companies. These clever, hardworking individuals identify a good business opportunity, scrape together some money and... View Details

Keywords: by Michael J. Roberts

July 24, 2013
Article

Family Business: How to Spot a Patriarch Problem

By: Josh Baron and Rob Lachenauer

In this article, the authors discuss the concept of a "problem patriarch" in family businesses, using the example of Carl, a successful leader who undermined the talent he hired. Carl started a struggling $10 million automotive parts distributor and turned it into a $2... View Details

Keywords: Leadership Style; Family Business; Transition