This study aims to identify which Ability and Willingness determinants underlie the adoption of sustainable practices in family businesses, thus addressing the gap between family business and sustainability issues. Despite the surge in academic interest on the concepts, the literature still results to be characterized by a poor specification of implementation capabilities and a limited understanding of the mechanisms through which family business characteristics translate into measurable sustainability performance. Through a systematic literature review, this research analyzed 65 peer-reviewed, identified via Scopus database. Building on this sample, 60 different determinants were identified and subsequently classified in seven Willingness macro-categories and seven Ability macro-categories. The analysis highlights how the effective adoption of sustainability by family businesses emerges thanks to the complex interaction between Willingness determinants - dominated by family values/identity, socio-emotional wealth and commitment/intention, and Ability determinants - driven by managerial/technical, financial, and digital skills. Furthermore, the research highlights that CSR processes are mainly driven by Willingness, while ESG practices are driven by Ability. The study put an emphasis also on the main core processes that mediate the translation of these determinants: Integration of CSR/ESG in core operations, Disclosure quality, CSR/ESG formalization, and Resource allocation. On the other hand, research shows that adopting Ability and Willingness individually is not sufficient. Appropriate organizational processes are needed to channel both in order to generate sustainable results. Finally, the framework highlights the fundamental role of several contexts and contingencies – Moderators - in altering the interaction between these factors, including, among others, the characteristics of the board of directors, policy makers and external pressure. By highlighting the inherent complementarity between Ability and Willingness, this research also provides an interpretative key in terms of interaction logic and comprehensibility. In practice, the results offer the possibility of a diagnostic framework that allows family businesses to assess their readiness for sustainability, as well as providing both implementation guidelines and recommendations for policymakers.
Questo studio mira a identificare quali determinanti di Ability e Willingness siano alla base dell'adozione di pratiche sostenibili nelle imprese familiari, colmando così il divario tra le imprese familiari e le questioni di sostenibilità. Nonostante il crescente interesse accademico per questi concetti, la letteratura risulta ancora caratterizzata da una scarsa specificazione delle capacità di implementazione e da una comprensione limitata dei meccanismi attraverso cui le caratteristiche delle imprese familiari si traducono in prestazioni di sostenibilità misurabili. Attraverso una revisione sistematica della letteratura, questa ricerca ha analizzato 65 articoli sottoposti a revisione paritaria, identificati tramite il database Scopus. Sulla base di questo campione, sono stati identificati 60 diversi fattori determinanti, successivamente classificati in sette macrocategorie di Willingness e sette macro-categorie di Ability. L'analisi evidenzia come l'efficace adozione della sostenibilità da parte delle imprese familiari emerga grazie alla complessa interazione tra le determinanti di Willingness - dominati dai valori/identità familiari, dalla ricchezza socio-emotiva e dall'impegno/intenzione, e le determinanti di Ability - guidati dalle competenze manageriali/tecniche, finanziarie e digitali. Inoltre, la ricerca evidenzia che i processi di CSR sono guidati principalmente da Willingness, mentre le pratiche ESG sono guidate da Ability. Lo studio ha posto l'accento anche sui principali processi che mediano la traduzione di questi determinanti: integrazione della CSR/ESG nelle operazioni principali, qualità dell'informativa, formalizzazione della CSR/ESG e allocazione delle risorse. D'altra parte, la ricerca dimostra che l'adozione individuale di Ability e di Willingness non è sufficiente. Sono necessari processi organizzativi adeguati per incanalarle entrambe al fine di generare risultati sostenibili. Infine, il quadro evidenzia il ruolo fondamentale dei contesti e delle contingenze - i moderatori - nell'alterare l'interazione tra questi fattori, tra cui, tra gli altri, le caratteristiche del consiglio di amministrazione, il policymaker e le pressioni esterne. Evidenziando la complementarità intrinseca tra Ability e Willingness, questa ricerca fornisce anche una chiave interpretativa in termini di logica di interazione e comprensibilità. Nella pratica, i risultati offrono la possibilità di un quadro diagnostico che consente alle imprese familiari di valutare la loro preparazione alla sostenibilità, oltre a fornire linee guida per l'attuazione e raccomandazioni per i policymaker.
Linking determinants to sustainable outcomes: how family business ability and willingness drive CSR adoption and ESG performance - a systematic review
Abbassidi, Abdelhak
2024/2025
Abstract
This study aims to identify which Ability and Willingness determinants underlie the adoption of sustainable practices in family businesses, thus addressing the gap between family business and sustainability issues. Despite the surge in academic interest on the concepts, the literature still results to be characterized by a poor specification of implementation capabilities and a limited understanding of the mechanisms through which family business characteristics translate into measurable sustainability performance. Through a systematic literature review, this research analyzed 65 peer-reviewed, identified via Scopus database. Building on this sample, 60 different determinants were identified and subsequently classified in seven Willingness macro-categories and seven Ability macro-categories. The analysis highlights how the effective adoption of sustainability by family businesses emerges thanks to the complex interaction between Willingness determinants - dominated by family values/identity, socio-emotional wealth and commitment/intention, and Ability determinants - driven by managerial/technical, financial, and digital skills. Furthermore, the research highlights that CSR processes are mainly driven by Willingness, while ESG practices are driven by Ability. The study put an emphasis also on the main core processes that mediate the translation of these determinants: Integration of CSR/ESG in core operations, Disclosure quality, CSR/ESG formalization, and Resource allocation. On the other hand, research shows that adopting Ability and Willingness individually is not sufficient. Appropriate organizational processes are needed to channel both in order to generate sustainable results. Finally, the framework highlights the fundamental role of several contexts and contingencies – Moderators - in altering the interaction between these factors, including, among others, the characteristics of the board of directors, policy makers and external pressure. By highlighting the inherent complementarity between Ability and Willingness, this research also provides an interpretative key in terms of interaction logic and comprehensibility. In practice, the results offer the possibility of a diagnostic framework that allows family businesses to assess their readiness for sustainability, as well as providing both implementation guidelines and recommendations for policymakers.| File | Dimensione | Formato | |
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https://hdl.handle.net/10589/246186