Desirable Features of a Successful Entrepreneur: The Perspective of Family and Non-Family Firms
Desirable Features of a Successful Entrepreneur: The Perspective of Family and Non-Family Firms

Summary/Abstract: The traits and skills of a successful entrepreneur may differ between businesses. In family enterprises, where at least two systems – family and business – meet, the desirable characteristics of a good entrepreneur are different from those in non-family businesses. The main goal of this paper was to establish which features of an entrepreneur are considered more favourable in family businesses than in non-family businesses. Our results demonstrate that for family entrepreneurs, features connected with sustaining long-term survival are more vital than for non-family businesses. Moreover, skills which may be useful in developing social capital – for example, negotiation skills and creating business relations – are more important in non-family fims, which is contrary to the assumption provided in the literature review. however, the evaluation of the results gained in this study indicates that in order to sustain their competitive advantages, family fims should not downplay the role of social skills and should become less risk-averse, as risk-taking can sometimes be the only way to ensure survival in the market.

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