The impact of family harmony on family SMEs' performance: the mediating role of information technologies
Journal of Family Business Management
ISSN: 2043-6238
Article publication date: 2 December 2021
Issue publication date: 1 December 2022
Abstract
Purpose
With the increasing digitalization processes taking place in different industries, the success of family small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) appears to be more under threat than for any other types of organizations, especially when information technologies (ITs) are not adequately used and managed. To grow and increase the chances of survival, family SMEs need more than ever IT. Stemming from agency theory, the aim of this article is to understand whether family harmony impacts the performance of family SMEs and to what extent IT mediates this relationship.
Design/methodology/approach
The research follows a quantitative approach, based on a sample of 182 family SMEs. Structured equation modeling, through SmartPLS, was employed to validate the research model.
Findings
This study’s main findings suggest that family harmony positively impacts firm performance and that IT governance and strategy mediate positively this relationship.
Research limitations/implications
First, the relatively limited number of respondents limits the degree of representativeness of all family SMEs. Replicating the research with a larger number of respondents could strengthen the findings. Second, this study is limited to French firms and future research could extend the findings by looking at cross-country comparisons.
Practical implications
Family SMEs are encouraged to link their IT governance with their IT strategy in order to increase their organizational performance. A favorable family harmony will make it easier to choose and implement a richer IT strategy and put in place an adequate IT governance function.
Originality/value
This research offers an enriched knowledge of the roles of family harmony and technological innovation in family SMEs and IT contexts as significant predictors of organizational performance. It contributes to family firm theory through the identification of three determinants of family SMEs' performance.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
The authors would like to thank Romain Chevillard and Christophe Saubiez for their help in getting in touch with family firms. They also thank the editorial team (reviewers and editors) for their feedbacks on their research.
Citation
Dutot, V., Bergeron, F. and Calabrò, A. (2022), "The impact of family harmony on family SMEs' performance: the mediating role of information technologies", Journal of Family Business Management, Vol. 12 No. 4, pp. 1131-1151. https://doi.org/10.1108/JFBM-07-2021-0075
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2021, Emerald Publishing Limited