Publicly Traded Family Businesses: A Long-Term Study on Family Involvement and Company Longevity

Going Public - a decision of great scope, from opportunity to demise. Many firms find themselves at a crossroads, sooner or later. Especially for family-owned businesses the decision to go public may bear additional risks. In the end, the question arises - how did it work out for others? This is where this book latches on. The focus of the study lays on German stock-listed family firm longevity and family involvement. With an observation period comprising 68 years, German family businesses with an IPO launch between 1950 and 1988 have been screened for changes regarding family shareholding and involvement along the timeline until the end of observation in 2018. The study reveals outcomes of numerous family businesses after IPO, of positive as well as negative nature. In the end, the findings have been combined into a model reflecting the identified success factors of the surviving stock-listed family businesses.

Kirsten Stotmeister studied Corporate Management & Economics at Zeppelin University. She is a member of the major shareholding family of a German stock-listed family business and manages the Single Family Office of the shareholding family. Furthermore, she represents the family as a member of the supervisory board and associated committees.