Technological, management, and persistent innovation in small and medium family firms: The influence of professionalism

Copyright © 2016 ASAC. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. We examine the effect of professional management on innovation in family-owned firms. Since professionalism is a critical but controversial issue that can influence the innovative capacity of family businesses, we aim to determine if professional management improves innovation outcomes from a comprehensive perspective. Using a sample of 583 Spanish family firms, we demonstrate that professionalism in management exerts a positive influence on innovation from both technological (product and process innovation) and management perspectives. We also find that firms managed by external professionals are willing to develop higher innovative activity and that professionalism contributes positively to persistent innovation. Copyright © 2016 ASAC. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.