Motivation gaps and implementation traps : the paradoxical and time-varying effects of family ownership on firm absorptive capacity

Kotlar, Josip and De Massis, Alfredo and Frattini, Federico and Kammerlander, N. (2020) Motivation gaps and implementation traps : the paradoxical and time-varying effects of family ownership on firm absorptive capacity. The Journal of Product Innovation Management, 37 (1). pp. 2-25. ISSN 0737-6782

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Abstract

We present a theoretical framework of family ownership as a driver of the heterogeneity (between‐firm differences) and variability (within‐firm differences over time) of absorptive capacity (AC). Building on our analysis of the multiple dimensions of family owner influence on firm behavior and the mechanisms that can shape the firm willingness and ability to acquire, assimilate, transform, and exploit external knowledge, we introduce the concepts of motivation gap and implementation gap to explain why, paradoxically, family ownership can cause both upward and downward divergences in AC. Our contingency framework identifies conditions under which the positive and negative effects of family ownership on AC are likely to prevail and adds a temporal perspective suggesting that AC varies depending on the duration of family ownership and ownership succession.