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Industrial family businesses in Germany

Family businesses play an outstanding role in the German economy. Even in the manufacturing sector - seemingly dominated by large, multinational companies - 90,431 out of 107,094 companies are family owned and led by a member of the owner family. In 2001, the authors, in a study conducted on behalf...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Kayser, Gunter
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: 2002
Description
Summary:Family businesses play an outstanding role in the German economy. Even in the manufacturing sector - seemingly dominated by large, multinational companies - 90,431 out of 107,094 companies are family owned and led by a member of the owner family. In 2001, the authors, in a study conducted on behalf of the Federation of German Industry (BDI e.V.), and Ernst & Young carried out an in-depth survey of the structural qualities, strategic activities, and competitive strengths and weaknesses of family businesses in the manufacturing sector. The data of the survey were generated by a postal survey and cover approximately 1,000 respondents. The major findings are as follows: Although family members make the decisions in family enterprises, a wide range of experts from within or without the enterprise are consulted in the run up to crucial decisions. Between 1998 and 2000, turnover and employment were extremely favorable in family-owned manufacturing companies. Although manufacturing family businesses have a rather small number of products and customers due to their high degree of specialization, they export their products worldwide. Increasingly, the enterprises are intensifying their...
Physical Description:111 - 115