At the Intersection of Corporate Governance and Performance in Family Business Settings: Extant Knowledge and Future Research

Abstract

Despite the proliferation of research on governance and performance of family firms over the past decades, the extant empirical evidence remains inconclusive. Acknowledging multiple sources of family firm variation, scholars started explaining the observed differences in governance structures and performance outcomes by taking into consideration the heterogeneity among family firms. In this paper, we undertake a review of the literature at the intersection of governance and performance in family firms to elucidate (a) the role of various governance attributes as performance drivers; and (b) the variability of governance effects across different performance indicators. By taking stock of what is already known and discussing avenues for further investigation, we seek to contribute to a more fine‐grained understanding of the intricate governance–performance relationship in light of the heterogeneous nature of family firms. The key priorities for future inquiry consist in: the identification of missing mediating and moderating variables; the inclusion of currently underexplored governance determinants of family firm performance; and the analysis of complementarity and substitution effects among multiple attributes of monitoring and their changing dynamics over time to secure an optimal governance–performance alignment in family firms.