Abstract
Family businesses play a crucial role in South Africa, holding significant economic and social importance. Many multinational companies in existence today started out as family businesses. Nevertheless, studies often focus on patriarchal succession views, leading to discrimination within family businesses. This study sought to investigate the drawbacks of family involvement in choosing a successor for family-owned businesses.
The study highlights the importance of effective governance practices and long-term planning for suitable succession. It utilises a systems-theory perspective to analyse the interaction between the family and business subsystems. A descriptive quantitative research design was used to conduct this research. The study’s 257 participants were recruited using convenience and snowball sampling techniques. A survey was distributed via SurveyMonkey to collect primary data. The study highlights that family businesses often face disagreements and conflicts during succession planning. The preference for bloodline over merit can lead to unsuitable successors being appointed, and the qualifications of family members are sometimes disregarded in the selection process. Gender bias is a notable concern, and family predecessors may choose successors they can control, showing reluctance to give up power. These factors pose significant challenges in effective succession planning within family businesses.