Accessing Resources from Innovation Partners: The Search Breadth of Family SMEs

This study investigates differences in the diversity of cooperation partners used for innovation-related activities (i.e., search breadth) between family and nonfamily small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), as well as within the group of family SMEs. The results generally confirm our hypotheses...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inJournal of small business management Vol. 50; no. 2; pp. 191 - 215
Main Authors Classen, Nicolas, Van gils, Anita, Bammens, Yannick, Carree, Martin
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Malden, USA Blackwell Publishing Inc 01.04.2012
Taylor & Francis Ltd
Subjects
Chief executive officers
Comparative analysis
Family firms
Family owned businesses
Innovation
Innovations
Organizational behavior
Organizational behaviour
Partners
Search theory
Senior management
Small & medium sized enterprises-SME
Small and medium sized enterprises
Studies
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Summary:This study investigates differences in the diversity of cooperation partners used for innovation-related activities (i.e., search breadth) between family and nonfamily small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), as well as within the group of family SMEs. The results generally confirm our hypotheses derived from the behavioral theory of the firm. Specifically, we show that family SMEs have a lower search breadth than their nonfamily counterparts. Our findings further illustrate how attributes of the CEO (level of education) and the top management team (nonfamily management involvement and educational background diversity) relate to the search breadth of family SMEs.
Bibliography:ArticleID:JSBM350
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Martin Carree is full professor in the School of Business and Economics, Department of Organization & Strategy at Maastricht University.
Nicolas Classen is a PhD candidate in the School of Business and Economics, Department of Organization & Strategy at Maastricht University.
Yannick Bammens is assistant professor in the School of Business and Economics, Department of Organization & Strategy at Maastricht University.
Anita Van Gils is associate professor in the School of Business and Economics, Department of Organization & Strategy at Maastricht University.
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ISSN:0047-2778
1540-627X
DOI:10.1111/j.1540-627X.2012.00350.x