Identifying territory-linked family business groups: a methodological proposal

Abstract

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to design a methodology to identify territory-linked family business groups (TLFBGs) in order to overcome the methodological challenges and ease studies about family business groups' (FBGs) impact on territories.Design/methodology/approachThe paper applied an algorithm to a data set of firms located in Gipuzkoa that were registered in the SABI database in 2018.FindingsThe paper defined a new construct, TLFBGs, and proposed a methodology that automatized the identification of TLFBGs by a seven-stage algorithm that was intended to be applicable to any firm-level economic and financial data set, including all registered firms and not only listed firms.Practical implicationsTLFBGs unveil the real relevance that family businesses have in the territorial development, encouraging the political support to family business. Additionally, the methodology provided allows understanding growth processes of family business.Originality/valueThe paper defines a new construct, TLFBGs, that highlights both the underexplored links existing between family and territory and between family and business groups, providing the process and criteria to capture it. The paper opens up large-scale empirical research on the social (and economic) influence of TLFBGs in territorial development.