PROPRIETE, DECISION ET STRATEGIE DE L'ENTREPRISE FAMILIALE : UNE ANALYSE
This theoretical paper aims at analyzing the family firm from the organizational and strategicpoints of view. First, it attempts to describe the idiosyncrasy of this organization through thedimensions of ownership and control patterns. The final intention is to determine what makesspecific the family firm and its strategy. Indeed, this entity would have a specific behaviorbecause the family component prevails and should influence strongly the management andgovernance of the firm. Thus, the process of decision-making on the one hand and the process ofstrategy implementation on the other hand would be certainly influenced by family issues. Twotheoretical perspectives are used to characterize this entity from an organizational point of view:Agency theory and stewardship theory. In a second step, the paper analyses the consequences offamily firm peculiarity on decision-making and strategy. First, we try to see whether thespecificity of ownership has an influence on strategic decision-making. Then, a second questionwill be addressed : would the pattern and content of family firm strategy be different from otherownership configurations?