{"id":38534,"date":"2025-01-14T13:45:00","date_gmt":"2025-01-14T13:45:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/?p=38534"},"modified":"2025-01-15T06:14:51","modified_gmt":"2025-01-15T06:14:51","slug":"we-study-aging-family-business-incumbents-who-refuse-to-let-go-%e2%88%92-heres-why-the-2024-race-felt-familiar","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/we-study-aging-family-business-incumbents-who-refuse-to-let-go-%e2%88%92-heres-why-the-2024-race-felt-familiar\/","title":{"rendered":"We study aging family business incumbents who refuse to let go \u2212 here\u2019s why the 2024 race felt familiar"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Nancy Forster-Holt<\/a>, University of Rhode Island<\/a><\/em>; Cassidy Creech<\/a>, Utah State University<\/a><\/em>, and James Davis<\/a>, Utah State University<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Succession planning is one of the biggest challenges family businesses face, with aging leaders often reluctant to let go of their power<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While we\u2019re experts<\/a> in family<\/a> business<\/a> and not politics, we couldn\u2019t help but notice striking parallels between our research and the dynamics of the 2024 election campaign. For much of the race, the leading candidates were former incumbents \u2013 both over age 75 and both resistant to stepping<\/a> aside<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As the race unfolded last year with both candidates digging in their heels \u2013 well, we can\u2019t say we were surprised.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While Joe Biden eventually ended his run after an intense pressure campaign \u2013 a decision he reportedly regrets<\/a> \u2013 Donald Trump stayed in the race and campaigned his way to victory. In fact, Trump, despite being unique in many ways, acted like a typical owner of a family business. Which, of course, he is<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That\u2019s why research into family business offers a useful lens through which to understand current events.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What research reveals about family business leaders<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Family businesses are the backbone of the American economy, by some estimates representing about 90%<\/a> of all U.S. enterprises. Up to 40% of family businesses at any given time are facing a succession issue, yet many avoid planning for it<\/a>, opting to wait out the leader. And by 2030, more than 30%<\/a> are expected to lose their leaders to retirement or death. The challenges of finding a successor are particularly significant when a leader is buoyed by what family business researchers call \u201cheroic self-concept.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

People with a heroic self-concept<\/a> \u2013 an idea that was introduced to the family business literature in 1989 \u2013 believe they have a heroic mission and derive a sense of heroic stature from their attachment to leadership roles. Examples from history include Winston Churchill and Theodore Roosevelt. From business, think Richard Branson of the Virgin companies, or Steve Jobs of Apple.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But while anyone can be a hero, not everyone has a heroic self-concept. In our recent study of more than 1,000 family business leaders<\/a> \u2013 785 men and 263 women \u2013 we found that male but not female leaders of family businesses were motivated by heroic self-concept.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Our work was informed by \u201cprecarious manhood theory<\/a>,\u201d a concept from social psychology that argues manhood is a status men have to fight to achieve. It\u2019s hard-won, easily lost and must be proven continually.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Our findings suggest \u201cletting go\u201d is a particularly fraught issue for male leaders for precisely this reason: They\u2019re more likely to feel a need to continually pursue a heroic mission and cultivate their heroic stature.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Trump as the family business patriarch<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

With his long history as a family business leader, Trump offers a natural extension of our work. His entire career has been spent cultivating a heroic stature. He consistently emphasizes his business successes, portraying himself as a dealmaker<\/a>, a winner<\/a> and a man with a mission<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While it\u2019s important to note that this analysis is based on our research findings and doesn\u2019t represent a clinical evaluation, we think Trump\u2019s reluctance to let go illustrates three key insights from family business research.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

First, family business leaders are motivated by a sense of unfinished mission. Trump\u2019s tagline, \u201cMake America Great Again,\u201d speaks to the heroic mission. The heroic mission is an achieved status that, according to the precarious manhood theory, must be continually reproven through risk-taking, competitive aggression and other acts of masculine swagger.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meanwhile, family business leaders tend not to talk about leaving and eschew retirement planning<\/a>, research shows. They stay in office much longer on average<\/a> than nonfamily CEOs \u2013 on average by about nine more years<\/a> in a privately held company and by about 20 more years<\/a> than the average for the CEO of a publicly traded company. And in retirement they often yearn for lost stature<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Likewise, Trump has framed his return as a necessary step in completing his unfinished business and cementing his legacy. Running for office again allows Trump to step back into the spotlight, reclaim the narrative and reinforce his image.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Second, when older leaders hold on to power, frustrated successors become casualties. Aging leaders who are reluctant to let go can deter potential successors from joining or remaining with the business, leading to a loss of talent. Uncertainty about the timing of the succession process combined with the view that the leader may never fully give up control can leave potential successors frustrated and resentful, feeling their ambitions have been stifled.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We believe this tendency isn\u2019t confined to family business but can be seen in U.S. government, too. When the leader is reluctant to let go, it can lead to a situation where potential successors seek opportunities elsewhere, leaving a shortage of qualified leaders. It can also prevent the introduction of fresh ideas and innovation, making it difficult for a business to adapt to change. This is the classic institutional drama that plays out in a gerontocracy. And perhaps it\u2019s no coincidence that Democrats are struggling with similar concerns<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And yet, while this tendency can create long-term problems for an institution, insiders are often complicit. There\u2019s little evidence that Trump\u2019s family \u2013 or party<\/a> \u2013 wants or expects him to step down. Similarly, we found that when leaders prioritize their personal need for control and status, family members, supporters, employees and associates often respond by avoiding the issue entirely, suppressing their real views.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Our research also suggests that a leader\u2019s prolonged quest for immortality can strain family unity. Evidence of this for Trump may include the defection from the administration by prior Trump family<\/a> and team members<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Our study adds nuance<\/a> to a significant body of research showing that older male leaders are steeped in society\u2019s expectations for men, which valorize \u201cyouthful\u201d masculine behaviors and identity. That leaves them with little to guide or inspire their behavior<\/a> in later life. The pressure on men to constantly prove their worth and manhood can leave them strongly attached to the status and identity they get from being a leader.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The dynamics of leadership, succession and the influence of the heroic self-concept that we study aren\u2019t limited to the boardroom. They play out on a much larger stage, shaping the decisions and actions of individuals who hold immense power, even on national and global scales.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Across the world, national leaders keep getting older<\/a>. Let\u2019s get curious about why they don\u2019t let go.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nancy Forster-Holt<\/a>, Clinical Associate Professor of Innovation and Entrepreneurship, URI Aging Fellows, UMaine Center on Aging Research Associate, University of Rhode Island<\/a><\/em>; Cassidy Creech<\/a>, Assistant Professor of Marketing and Strategy, Utah State University<\/a><\/em>, and James Davis<\/a>, Professor of Management, Utah State University<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This article is republished from The Conversation<\/a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Nancy Forster-Holt, University of Rhode Island; Cassidy Creech, Utah State University, and James Davis, Utah State University Succession planning is one of the biggest challenges family businesses face, with aging leaders often reluctant to let go of their power. While we\u2019re experts in family business and not politics, we couldn\u2019t help but notice striking parallels […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":56,"featured_media":38535,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[826,5,8025,277,276,46,295,25,36,4],"tags":[13922,479,13241,4986,15933,885,891,886,860,15934,14129],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38534"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/56"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=38534"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38534\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":38536,"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38534\/revisions\/38536"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/38535"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=38534"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=38534"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=38534"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}