GenSpring Family Offices has announced the launch of an international study focusing on the governance practices and policies of family enterprises, along with their entrepreneurial orientation.

The new study, Sustaining the Family Enterprise: Understanding the Impact of Entrepreneurial Orientation and Governance Practices, expands on a 2009 pilot study on family enterprises.

It is based on the premise, as proposed by the researchers, that governance practices and policies, as well as entrepreneurial orientation, are critical to sustaining the family enterprise for multiple generations.

Participation in the next phase of the study is open to family business members who own or have owned a family business with revenues in excess of $50 million, and/or have personal net worth exceeding $20 million and have/had a family business.

The study is being conducted in both English and Spanish and aims to have a significant international component to its sample group (around 20-30 per cent).

The 2009 pilot study, which was conducted in collaboration with the University of North Carolina at Greensboro and the Family Firm Institute, examined the relationship between the family business and family office. It explored issues such as when, how and why some enterprising families start family offices or join multi-family offices, and the challenges families face in sustaining their businesses and wealth. 

Findings of the original study included that 86 per cent of families intend to pass their business on to the next generation, and 50 per cent have a succession plan in place for this.

Meanwhile, key concerns among families were devising an effective investment policy (45 per cent), leaving a legacy (40 per cent), and wealth transfer planning (40 per cent).

Considering views across generations, the survey found that the senior generation tended to view themselves as being more entrepreneurial in spirit than the younger generation when it came to the family business and wealth.

The new study is being conducted in collaboration with several researchers on both a national and international basis. Contributors include: Kirby Rosplock, director of research and development, GenSpring Family Offices; Dianne Welsh, the Hayes distinguished chair of entrepreneurship, University of North Carolina at Greensboro; Juan Roure, professor of management and entrepreneurship, IESE Business School, University of Navarra, Spain; and Juan Luis Segurado, researcher at IESE Business School, University of Navarra, Spain.

Florida-headquartered GenSpring has 15 family offices in Atlanta, Charlotte, Charleston, Costa Mesa, Denver, Greenwich, New York City, Miami, Nashville, Orlando, Palm Beach, Phoenix, Tampa Bay, Sarasota, and Washington, DC. Along with its affiliates GenSpring International and GenSpring Charleston, it has around $20 billion in assets under advisement.

More information on the study can be accessed through the firm’s website.