The purpose of this research is to investigate differences in the perceived performance and competitiveness of “successful” family and non‐family‐owned firms in overseas markets.
This paper reports on findings from a postal survey and subsequent interviews involving managers of firms that are winners of the UK Queen's Award for Export.
Statistical analysis and follow‐up interviews establish that limited differences exist between high performing family and non‐family‐owned SMEs in respect of measures and sources of performance.
The data were based on a sample of firms judged to have been successful and therefore the usefulness of the sampling frame is questionable based on the criteria of the award's committee.
The findings indicate that small family‐owned businesses can be just as competitive in overseas markets as their non family‐owned counterparts, assuming that an effective strategy is employed. These can serve as useful role models.
Prior research has focused on general surveys and has not explicitly investigated differences between family and non‐family‐owned higher performing firms.
