Family Businesses in Germany: Significance and Structure

Abstract

This paper shows the relevance of family businesses to the German economy and their structure with respect to ownership, governance, and management. The data show that ownership, rather than governance or management, is the key to differentiating family from nonfamily businesses. As governance and management are more complementary to each other, families in German family businesses seek influence either through family members on the supervisory board or on the management board. The empirical data from this study is based on a clear definition of family business and a random sample, and it provides the basis for further investigation into German family businesses.