Family Firms Engagement with Business Model Innovation A qualitative study applying the lens of Institutional Logics

Abstract

Family firms are a highly important form of organization which makes up the majority of businesses within Europe. In order to survive for multiple generations, family firms have to adapt and change in different ways, one of which is through business model innovation (BMI). Scientific research on the topic of BMI in the context of family firms is highly limited. This study therefore aims to bridge this gap and investigate BMI engagement within family firms. Conducting a qualitative study, 23 semi-structured interviews were held with both family members as well as non-family members across seven different family firms. Through the lens of institutional logics, insights regarding what guides and explains family firms' engagement with BMI were captured and conceptualized. Family firms’ engagement with BMI is shaped by four different cornerstones. These cornerstones are guided by constellations of logics, comprised of family, market, corporate, and community logic. When engaging with BMI, an aspect of agency is present as members of the firms draw upon multiple cornerstones, resulting in several constellations being knotted together. This contributes to the field of management by showcasing how family firms are guided towards engagement with BMI and how stagnant constellations can be knotted into a guiding institutional knot.