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How does common ownership affect corporate innovation after succession in Chinese family firms? A perspective on value cocreation

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Abstract

Intergenerational succession often leads to insufficient innovation in family firms, but there is still no consensus on how common ownership affects this situation. Therefore, from the perspective of value cocreation, this study explores the mechanisms through which common ownership influences the innovation of family firms after succession, focusing on two aspects: motivation and behavior. Using unbalanced panel data of 167 Chinese listed family firms that underwent succession between 2004 and 2021, we empirically investigate the way in which common ownership impacts corporate innovation and the mediating role of value proposition motivation and value flow behavior. Our findings indicate that common ownership contributes positively to corporate innovation and that its influence is exerted through value proposition optimization and value flow intervention, providing empirical evidence for the study of the economic consequences of common ownership. Furthermore, we explore the mediating role of specific value proposition motivations and value flow behaviors in the impact of common ownership on corporate innovation. This research suggests that family business succession activities should be examined in the context of a more complete network of corporate relationships and provides insights into how common ownership influences corporate behavior in value cocreation.

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The data that support the findings of this study are available on request from the corresponding author. The data are not publicly available due to privacy or ethical restrictions.

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Acknowledgements

We are also grateful for the comments and criticisms of the journal’s reviewers and our colleagues.

Funding

This work was supported by the National Social Science Fund of China [Grant Number 21BGL010].

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  1. Glorious Sun School of Business and Management, Donghua University, Shanghai, 200051, China

    Jiong Wu, Lei Zhu & Yuheng Hu

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Wu, J., Zhu, L. & Hu, Y. How does common ownership affect corporate innovation after succession in Chinese family firms? A perspective on value cocreation. Rev Manag Sci (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11846-023-00724-y

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