Introduction
The term family business is often accompanied by varying definitions that indicate it to be an ambiguous concept. The most common variables that indicate family involvement in a business are ownership and management. The presence of one, the other, or both variables is what many academics and researchers agree constitutes a family business. Miller & Rice (1967) state that family involvement is what makes a family business, while most researchers, such as Handler (1989), agree that involvement must include ownership and management. Others like Churchill and Hatten (1987) claim that the criterion of a family successor must be present in order to qualify a business as a family business. Over the years, many other definitions have arisen, all of which give varying importance to the aforementioned principle (Chua, Chrisman, & Sharma, 1999). The following paragraphs will utilize this definition in exploration of the organizational structure, family issues, and protection plans via succession and estate planning that are essential for any family run business.
