Family-owned companies used not to get much respect, when they were noticed at all. Many public companies have dispersed ownership and are managed by professional executives, who are handed financial incentives to perform, and are kept under pressure by activist shareholders.
When many family businesses make the news, it is often because of disputes among relatives, such as the bitter tussle between the Ambani brothers in India, or when the next generation at companies such as News Corp struggle to show they can match the founder or leader.
But things are changing for family companies. For one thing, the model of capitalism followed since the shareholder revolution of the 1970s and 1980s, is looking tired. As the tenure of chief executives decreases and the clamour from hedge funds for short-term returns increases, doubts are growing about whether this is the best way to build a company’s long-term value.