Corporate governance in family businesses from Latin America, Spain and Portugal A review of the literature

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to summarize what is known about corporate governance in family firms from Ibero-American countries based on published research. Methodology - The authors conducted a literature search to identify the articles that have been published about the corporate governance of family firms in Latin America, Spain, and Portugal between 1980 and 2014. The authors found 38 articles that provide the sample for this review. Findings - The results indicate that research on governance in Ibero-American family firms has focussed on understanding structures and processes related to the business and ownership systems. However, generalization of results across the region is difficult because of the lack of systematic approach of studies and the focus on a small number of countries. Research limitations/implications - There are at least two limitations of this work: the small sample of projects identified for the review and the lack of systematic approach to research. Both of these may be due to the importance given to publishing the university context in this part of the world. As the culture of knowledge changes, the authors expect that research in this area will grow. Originality/value - Although previous research indicates that cultural characteristics affect governance system choices and understanding of family firms, not many studies explore the importance of culture in governance choices of family firms. This paper provides a baseline of the understanding of governance in Ibero-American family firms, and identifies important area for future research.