Family and non-family businesses in iran: Coupling among innovation, internationalization and growth-expectation

Abstract

Gallo and Sveen, in 1991, problematized whether family businesses can implement factors facilitating internationalization. Focusing on innovation, export and growth-expectation in a family business, we consider how these three outcomes are aligned, with a coupling that may be loose or tight, a synergy that benefits the business. This raises a further issue, is governance of a business affecting not only each of the outcomes, but also their coupling? A representative sample of 530 businesses in Iran was surveyed in 2018 for Global Entrepreneurship Monitor. Innovation, export and growth-expectation are found to be lower in family businesses. Coupling between innovation and export, and also between export and growth-expectation, are found to be looser in family businesses. Findings suggest that coupling among performance outcomes in family businesses can feasibly be tightened, thereby reinforcing performance. The findings contribute to ways of enhancing performance endeavors of family businesses with practical implications as advocated by Gallo and Sveen.