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Despite much progress in the field of family business research, there is still no unequivocal quantitative evidence on how many family businesses are generally transferred within the family and how many are sold to nonfamily members. Accordingly, the purpose of our paper is to overcome this data problem and to try to get a better estimate of these rates.

To determine a better estimate of intrafamily successions in Germany, we conducted a meta-analysis of 33 samples from 27 studies covering 75,522 firms facing or having already faced a business transfer.

Our results indicate that 62% of these family firms are (planned to be) transferred to family members. This type of industry strongly determines the mode of succession. However, methodological issues like study quality and sample design also influence estimated succession rates.

Policymakers need robust statistics so they can base their actions and economic policies on reliable information. However, in the absence of official statistics – as in the case of family firms handing over their company within or outside the family – information is difficult to generate. Our findings provide a generalizable estimate of prevalence rates, providing German policymakers, and those in other countries when applying these methods, with useful information.

This paper suggests that a theory of family firm succession needs to consider more deeply the context in which succession decisions occur. By exploring variables affecting succession rates such as firm size and industry but also methodological issues like sample design and study quality, our analysis also provides a better understanding of central determinants of successions within and outside the family.

We argue that entrepreneurship research should use meta-analysis to integrate the findings of the field. A meta-analytical approach has several advantages as compared with narrative reviews: First, narrative reviews are likely to bias empirical evidence because they are limited by the information-processing capacities of the reviewers (Tett, Jackson, & Rothstein, 1991). This is often a downward bias leading to the conclusion of little positive knowledge in the field. For example, frequency counts of significant results ignore sampling errors of individual studies, reliability problems of instruments, range restrictions of samples, dichotomization of continuous variables, imperfect construct validity, and extraneous factors (Hunter & Schmidt, 2004). These issues usually result in a higher incidence of Type II errors (i.e., rejecting the hypothesis wrongly). Thus, narrative reviews are more likely to lead to the conclusion that there are no relationships between independent and dependent variables in entrepreneurship when in fact they are (Hunter & Schmidt, 1990; Tett et al., 1991). Second, meta-analysis accumulates studies based on a set of explicit decision rules and, therefore, is less biased by subjective perceptions of the reviewer than narrative reviews. Meta-analyses require judgments as well, e.g., when defining the area of the study or coding moderator variables. However, the decisions are public and open to criticism and replication by other scientists (Johnson & Eagly, 2000). Third, meta-analysis is based on many studies and, thus, avoids the influence of single studies. Fourth, meta-analysis controls for sampling error variance and, thus, controls for power deficits of individual studies (Hunter & Schmidt, 2004). For example, the Brockhaus and Nord (1979) study is frequently cited in the entrepreneurship literature for providing evidence that there is no relationship of personality characteristics with entrepreneurship. However, this study is based on a small sample of 31 business owners and therefore, has serious statistical power problems. Noteworthy, the effect sizes of small samples are less precise in estimating a population value than effect sizes of larger samples. Fifth, meta-analyses can correct many errors of individual studies (Hunter & Schmidt, 2004). Since meta-analyses estimate population correlations between given variables, it is important to correct for errors of studies (e.g., unreliability, range restriction, and sampling error) to achieve unbiased estimates. Sixth, meta-analysis allows an assessment of the magnitude of relationships and, thus, provides more precise and often comparable assessments of the validity of concepts. Thus, meta-analyses support the assessment of the practical significance of findings. Seventh, meta-analysis tests for variations in relationships across studies and, therefore, allows an assessment of the generalizeability of effects. If the size of reported relationships varies considerably between different studies, there will be context conditions that account for these variations. These context conditions are moderators that affect the size of relationships. The moderators may include study characteristics, method moderators, and theoretical moderators. Thus, meta-analyses also help to identify areas for new studies. Finally, meta-analysis techniques allow to test more than one independent and/or moderator variable by using methods based on regression analysis (Lipsey & Wilson, 2001). Using such procedures allows to estimate the independent contribution of variables on results, to control for methodological variables, and to test the interactions between moderator variables.

This paper aims to review current information and research concerning the entrepreneurial spirit of employees. It provides a brief overview of entrepreneurial behavior, how it contributes to organizational success and what tends to motivate it. It offers suggestions for practitioners.

It examines research and opinion for the past several years and summarizes it to help practitioners to stimulate entrepreneurial spirit in organizations.

It reveals that 5-8 per cent of employees will eventually leave to set up their own business, while an equivalent percentage creates and develops products, services, cost-savings and the like to benefit the firm and does not leave the organization. Both groups share an entrepreneurial spirit and are driven to innovate and create.

It reveals that organization managers can choose to encourage or deflate the entrepreneurial spirit through various means.

It explains that society as a whole can benefit from the labors of individuals who search for business opportunities and then work to bring them to fruition.

It gives an overview of recent research and opinion with regard to both entrepreneurial spirit and entrepreneurial behavior that is not readily available in other sources. It provides current information that may guide practice and policy development.

Entrepreneurial orientation (EO) has been viewed almost exclusively through the lens of profit-driven firms. However, individuals engage in entrepreneurship not only for economic reasons but also to enrich a community or to advance society. Drawing on upper echelons theory, the purpose of this paper is to address this issue by proposing that founders’ social identities shape the strategic choices of their ventures.

Drawing on the data from 318 founders in the early stages of their entrepreneurial activity, the study applies partial least squares structural equation modeling to empirically test whether founders’ social identities influence their ventures’ EO.

The findings of the current research show that founders whose dominant purpose is the creation of value for others are more likely to launch ventures oriented toward innovation. On the other hand, ventures of founders driven by economic self-interest accept more risk, which leads to higher performance outcomes on the enterprise, community and societal levels.

The study enhances the EO discussion by adding social identity theory as a way to explain different levels of EO in firms and answers the call for more diversity in EO–performance measurement by applying specific outcomes on the enterprise, community and societal levels to investigate whether a firm’s EO leads to the desired outcomes.

Adopting lean principles can unleash several opportunities for firms seeking to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of their product development (PD) process. This study aims to investigate the implementation paths of lean tools in the innovation process of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

A set of 47 lean tools are identified from the literature and ascribed to the five lean thinking principles, i.e. Value, Map, Flow, Pull and Perfection. Their practical adoption – in terms of “when” and “how” – is then explored in a multiple case study of three SMEs in the manufacturing industry.

SMEs adopt multiple lean tools in different phases of their innovation process. They are still at the beginning of the holistic adoption of lean PD, but some core lean tools, such as A3 reports and visual management, are adopted systematically. Results reveal that specific sets of lean tools and supporting principles are more valuable in certain phases of SMEs innovation process. Specifically, the lean tools concerning the principle of Value and Map can enable the phases of Innovation inputs, Concept development and Solution implementation; the ones ascribed to Flow and Pull the phases of Concept development, Testing and experimentation, and Solution implementation; the Perfection tools to the final phases of Testing and experimentation, Solution implementation and Market introduction.

Results provide a reference for SMEs already adopting lean tools in their production process to be extended to the PD process, especially when the delivery of new products is pivotal. Innovative SMEs could evaluate the introduction of specific lean tools in one or more definite phases of their PD process.

The study contributes to the literature on the complementarity between lean and innovation by studying the context of SMEs with a process perspective, thus unveiling the potential paths of a widespread application of lean innovation in SMEs.

Grounded in stewardship theory, this study explores the motives, actions and meanings of multiple stakeholders involved in an inter-family hospitality family firm succession.

A longitudinal, ethnographic case study approach collects data from 15 in-depth interviews, one year of observation and a one-month on-site internship.

Results show that a well-defined succession plan and the active involvement of the successor/s in the succession process would foster a strong stewardship commitment to the family business. Moreover, a clear and open communication strategy is required to strategically manage rivalry and competition among potential successors during an inter-family succession.

The succession process of family firms remains an intensely discussed phenomenon, and despite its importance to the tourism and hospitality industry, the intersection between tourism and hospitality and family business literature is sparse. Notably, the tourism and hospitality literature lacks a multiple stakeholder perspective to holistically capture the motives, actions and meanings of numerous stakeholders involved in an inter-family succession.

The aim of this paper is to investigate the effects of environmental dynamism on different EO dimensions in family firms. The authors also examine the moderating role of national culture (uncertainty avoidance and in-group collectivism) and the level of family control and influence in fostering/hindering this relationship.

A survey was conducted among 1,143 family firms from twenty-eight countries. The authors developed and tested hypotheses through a fixed-effects regression analysis.

The findings suggest that environmental dynamism has a positive effect on all three EO dimensions. Analysis reveals a positive moderating role of family control and influence and negative moderating roles of in-group collectivism and uncertainty avoidance.

The findings imply that family firm managers should carefully interpret the influence of their national culture on family firm behavior. More specifically, family firms in dynamic environments should consider the importance of the national culture in which they are embedded. Those operating in high uncertainty avoidant and highly collectivist cultures should take proactive steps to cultivate a corporate entrepreneurial culture. On the other hand, the family should not undermine the effect of its control and influence. In dynamic environments, family control and influence may be a competitive advantage in reinforcing entrepreneurial orientation.

The study contributes to the literature on EO in family firms by expanding the previous research on the antecedents of EO and examining moderation effects of culture and family control and influence across a broad multi-country sample. In contrast with the common findings regarding the effect of family logic on EO, the study shows the strengthening role of family control and influence in the relationship between environmental dynamism and EO. The authors show that culture as an informal institution may also play a critical role in hindering/strengthening the relationship between environmental dynamism and EO.

The paper aims to estimate the capacity of supreme audit institutions’ (SAIs) audits to deter potentially wasteful year-end procurement spending. It also studies heterogeneous responses to SAIs’ audits depending on whether agencies’ top managers are appointed through a competitive procedure or not.

A letter signed by the head of Chile’s SAI was sent to a hundred randomly chosen agencies two weeks before the end of the fiscal year, with instructions on year-end spending accounting and an audit threat. In addition, a hundred agencies that did not receive the letter were used as a control group.

Agencies that received the letter reduced year-end aggregate procurement spending by 33% relative to controls. Purchases of office supplies, safety equipment, personal care products and paper products experienced the most considerable reductions. The decrease in year-end spending was smaller for agencies with at least one top manager appointed through a competitive procedure.

A SAI’s audit threat significantly reduced year-end procurement spending. Larger reductions in agencies headed by political appointees and across categories of goods that have been flagged as likely to be purchased to exhaust the budget suggest the avoided expenditures would have been wasteful. Further research is needed to determine if the net social value of year-end procurement spending deterred by SAIs audits is negative as suggested.

This paper has implications for the institutional support of SAIs audits and civil service.

This paper provides novel experimental evidence of SAIs’ audits’ deterrence power on public agencies’ year-end procurement spending.

This study aims to identify the influence of perceived corporate social responsibility (PCSR) on consumer brand commitment in ridesharing services.

PCSR is a second-order construct reflecting three dimensions – economic, environment and ethics. A total of 423 useable responses were collected through an online survey. To test the hypotheses, structural equation modelling was used via AMOS 22.0.

Findings reveal that PCSR has a significant influence on consumer brand trust and brand identification. However, no direct relationship is observed between PCSR and brand commitment. The effect of PCSR and brand commitment is significantly mediated by brand trust and brand identification.

The investment of resources in corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities has many advantages because it increases trust and identification towards the brand. Ridesharing business firms are growing in size, so they should harness CSR activities by investing money into them that benefits society.

Sharing economy services have the potential to assist the global and local economy towards environmental friendliness. Yet, there is a lack of research on how the sharing economy model works the social responsibility aspects of the model and its impact on consumer response. This study assesses the dimensions of PCSR and its influence on brand commitment via a brand trust and brand identification towards ridesharing services.