Title: Effects of national culture on leadership succession planning in small-to-medium scale family enterprises

Authors: Kim Anne Menezes; Suku Bhaskaran; Akshay Deswal

Addresses: GD Goenka World Institute, Lancaster University, GD Goenka Education City, Gurgaon Sohna Road, Delhi-NCR, Haryana 122103, India ' GD Goenka World Institute, Lancaster University, GD Goenka Education City, Gurgaon Sohna Road, Delhi-NCR, Haryana 122103, India ' GD Goenka World Institute, Lancaster University, GD Goenka Education City, Gurgaon Sohna Road, Delhi-NCR, Haryana 122103, India

Abstract: This article reviews leadership succession in small-to-medium scale family enterprises in India and, through amplification of the findings, the practices of small-to-medium scale family enterprises in other emerging economies. The findings reveal that succession planning and practice is influenced by cultural underpinnings such as succession being confined to male family members; successors assuming leadership because of family expectations and filial piety rather than interest and competency; non-induction of 'outsiders' thereby limiting the opportunities to introduce greater diversity in leadership teams; business competencies being overly perceived from a business acumen and contact networks perspective; and training and development being confined to learning through shadowing incumbents. Consequently, family enterprises are unable to develop leaders with competencies to transition these enterprises to a higher growth and development trajectory. Small-scale family enterprises are not accessing market opportunities arising from the liberalisation of India's economy and its greater integration with the global economy.

Keywords: family enterprises; leadership succession; succession planning; national culture; small-to-medium enterprises; India; emerging economies; case studies.

DOI: 10.1504/IJESB.2019.102516

International Journal of Entrepreneurship and Small Business, 2019 Vol.38 No.1/2, pp.210 - 231

Received: 05 Aug 2017
Accepted: 07 Nov 2017

Published online: 30 Sep 2019 *

Full-text access for editors Full-text access for subscribers Purchase this article Comment on this article