Exploring the growth process of successors in long-lived small and medium-sized manufacturing companies: a qualitative study

Background: Japan is the world's largest country in terms of the number of long-lived companies, the majority of which are family-owned small and medium-sized enterprises. On the other hand, many business owners will be retiring without successors, and the closure of these small and medium enterprises may have a significant impact on the future economy. The purpose of this study is to explore the growth process of successors in long-lived small and medium-sized manufacturing companies so that potential successors can know what they will experience as managers and be prepared for the future, and professionals who support successors can be provided with information on the growth process of successors to provide appropriate support.

Methods: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with six successors of small and medium-sized manufacturing companies that are more than half a century old. Their answers were analyzed using the modified grounded theory approach to construct a hypothetical model.

Results: In total, 46 concepts, four categories, 17 subcategories, and one core category with an analysis result diagram were formed. The diagram shows the successors gained confidence in management through the dilemma between autonomy and constraint in the early stage of succession, which was found in previous research. Following the initial stage, the successors responded to the crisis caused by market constraints such as being stuck in a new market, unreasonable treatment from customers, and created autonomous strategies in their businesses.

Conclusions: By experiencing repetitive crises, the successors tend to acquire new perspectives toward the naturally occurring crises. This change of premise by the successors is considered as the process of double-loop learning. Relationships inside and outside the company influence the generation of this viewpoint. From a long-term perspective, a sense of unity with employees, stable employment, and the pursuit of enjoyment constitute the successors' values in this model.