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Family firms (FF) reveal a considerable heterogeneity in their innovation behavior. Due to the successful long-term preservation of their innovation capacity via special resources and routines, multi-generational FF are of special interest in terms of learning from good practices. Against this background, the purpose of this paper is to ascertain principles for successful innovation behavior in long-term successful FF and to contribute to bridging the theory-practice gap.

Results are generated by analyzing innovation and innovation processes in five cases of long-term successful FF. On the basis of these good practice cases, the “rules of the game” of innovating are re-constructed using fine and system analyses based on narrative interviews with the FF CEOs.

Intense reflection on the innovation characteristics of the five good practice cases along with a critical examination of the literature on innovation in FF were used to derive practical suggestions for FF in the form of 11 principles for FF taking a proactive interest in innovation.

The 11 generated principles of successfully innovative FF were validated by FF CEOs who confirmed the practical relevance of these principles as valuable guidelines for successful innovation. Owners and managers may reflect on these principles against the background of the innovation behavior of their firms and adapt them to their contextual conditions.

These principles serve as tangible suggestions for developing adequate innovation management strategies for individual FF. Furthermore, two FF CEOs were invited to comment on the viability of principles based on their comprehensive practical experience.

The aim of the paper is to provide a systematic overview of the literature dealing with business‐related conflicts between family members in (their) family firms (FF). On the basis of this focus, the research questions are: Which delimitable topics with regard to contents can be identified in the literature on conflicts in FF? Which findings are available referring to this and how were they generated? Which options can be derived for future research?

The analysis is based on a systematic literature review including articles published in peer‐reviewed academic journals from January 1990 to June 2010.

It was found that three distinguishable topical areas can be identified: causes for conflicts in FF; effects of conflicts in FF; and management of conflicts in FF.

The small number of contributions calls for further studies with replication studies as a promising option. Due to the specific nature of the conflict dynamic and logic in FF, which can hardly be captured by quantitative studies alone (even with longitudinal designs), a promotion of qualitative studies is advisable, too. In this regard, a systems‐theoretical perspective could utilize the capability of this theory and strengthen the theoretical foundation of research on conflicts in FF.

This review shows three rather clearly distinguishable research streams and offers options for future research, with a special focus of modern systems theory which conceptualizes conflicts as a special system within the family business system.

Entrepreneurship is defined as a “life skill”, and the European Union (EU) has recently called on member states to promote the development of entrepreneurial attitudes from primary school right through to university level. The paper aims to investigate which factors influence entrepreneurial thinking and attitudes towards entrepreneurship in vocational and general secondary education in Austria.

The paper is based on the configuration approach. This approach was adapted as a conceptual model for the origins of entrepreneurial orientation and start‐up inclinations among school pupils. The model consists of four dimensions: person, education context, education process, and environment. A total of 900 Austrian pupils at secondary‐level schools were surveyed with a standardized questionnaire.

The results show that entrepreneurial orientation as well as inclinations to start up a new business can indeed be influenced considerably, with potential targeted influences at the personality level, in the education process, and in the pupil's immediate and general environment. It is easier to influence entrepreneurial orientation than start‐up inclinations.

Owing to the heterogeneous school systems in Europe it may be difficult to transfer findings from one country to another. Much more research is needed for identifying country‐specific factors of influence.

The results provide evidence that the potential for developing entrepreneurial orientation and promoting the abilities needed for a free and self‐determined career has not been exhausted by any means.

The study shows that the education process can have a considerable influence on entrepreneurial orientation, and that the EU's call for the promotion of entrepreneurial spirit can be fulfilled in the sphere of education.

This paper examines the financial aspect of hallmark sport events. It describes the financial requirements and the sources of income. Thereby an integrated concept of financing hallmark sport events has been developed which allows to compare those events independently to situational differentiation. On the basis of literature research the first part shows the mechanisms of action of the event management, the financial requirements and the sources of income. The second part points out the three dimensions of the classification model and the third part illustrates the implications of the model through the case study of the Engadin Ski Marathon 2001 and the FIS Alpine World Ski Championships in St. Moritz 2003. The paper concludes with the three major influences on an integrated model and some points for further research.

This editorial aims to provide an overview of the current state of research in the UK and proposes some future directions for research for family business scholars.

This article is an editorial with commentary about recent developments in understanding research gaps in the field of family business research.

The paper discusses the areas where future research in family business is required focusing on three levels: the organization; the individual; and the community.

The paper suggests that there are many unanswered questions which merit further and future research.

The future of family business research is not in question. The paper posits that there are areas of study in family business which may particularly benefit from taking a cross‐disciplinary approach and suggests that family business researchers might consider exploring theory in the entrepreneurship, small business, sociology, economics and industrial relations areas to gain insights and support for theoretical development in family business.

This article highlights recent UK‐focused discussions regarding the future research directions and gaps in family business research. It suggests there are some emerging areas which require renewed focus particularly related to strategic decision making in family businesses from the organization, individual and social/community perspectives.

Over a two‐month period, the editor of this review has searched worldwide for the most interesting and useful media articles on the topic of strategic management for the July/August issue of Strategy & Leadership.

In addition to his own collection of finds, the editor sorted through suggestions by a team of veteran top managers and senior academics for new strategic concepts and actions.

The result is a surprisingly diverse set of media discoveries on such topics as best‐in‐class metrics, the value of an MBA, consumer market evolution, new Internet marketing concepts, price cut traps, must win battles, Google business model innovations, the strategy/design interface.

URL links and references have been provided for the articles so that managers can easily follow up this quick scan of the media by reading the articles in full.

Provides a snapshot of what managers are reading and a guide to trends and fresh thinking.

One of the central requirements of research is that the knowledge acquired should not only be academically rigorous, but also socially useful. If an article fails to address practical relevance, the audience will question its value and respond with “so what?”. Due to recent criticism regarding the practical relevance of innovation research, the purpose of this paper is to examine whether a similar “ivory divide” prevails in research on innovation in family businesses. More specifically, this paper investigates to what extent and at what depth researchers generate practical implications for innovation in family businesses. Furthermore, different strategies to bridge the “ivory divide” are discussed.

This literature review systematically analyses the findings of 50 journal articles focusing on innovation in family businesses published between 2004 and 2015. Based on this, the articles are classified according to their degree of practical relevance.

Although the findings unanimously show the relevance of innovation for strengthening business’s performance, only a minority of articles offer in-depth implications for practitioners in terms of practical guidance for action and application-oriented recommendations. A number of reasons for the development of this “ivory divide” are discussed and suggestions for how the connection between research and practice could be strengthened are provided.

This paper attempts to provide an impulse toward more practically oriented family business research in order to increase its interestingness to academics and its value to practitioners.