Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/306394 
Year of Publication: 
2023
Citation: 
[Journal:] Small Business Economics [ISSN:] 1573-0913 [Volume:] 62 [Issue:] 4 [Publisher:] Springer US [Place:] New York, NY [Year:] 2023 [Pages:] 1429-1448
Publisher: 
Springer US, New York, NY
Abstract: 
Digital innovation, i.e. the creation of products and services, processes, or business models on the basis of digital technology, represents a new innovation phenomenon that offers important opportunities, but also entails high risks. Family firm research argues that family firms generally possess a greater ability to innovate, but differ in their willingness to do so. We propose that with regard to digital innovation family firms rather face an "ability and willingness challenge", i.e. they differ in their willingness and their ability to engage in digital innovation. We analyze two factors—non-family managers and transgenerational control intentions—that might help family firms overcome the ability and willingness challenge and that allows to explain heterogeneity among family firms in the adoption of digital innovation. An empirical, survey-based investigation of 104 German family firms supports our hypotheses. We contribute to the literature on digital innovation in family firms as well as on family firm professionalization.
Subjects: 
Family firm
Digital innovation
Transgenerational control intention
Loss aversion
Non-family management
JEL: 
O32
Persistent Identifier of the first edition: 
Creative Commons License: 
cc-by Logo
Document Type: 
Article
Document Version: 
Published Version

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