Family across borders social capital and diaspora entrepreneurial preparedness

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to study the way in which family ties influence the entrepreneurial preparedness of the diaspora family business owner. Design/methodology/approach In-depth interviews were carried out with 15 Cypriot family business owners hosted in various countries. The paper draws on social capital theory and uses an abductive analytical approach. Findings The findings of this paper illustrate that family ties coming from the family across borders play a significant role for diaspora family business owners’ entrepreneurial preparedness. Hidden values deriving from the interpersonal relationships within the family across borders drive the diaspora family business owners to learn upon self-reflection and become entrepreneurially prepared, led by both urgency and esteem. Practical implications This study provides practical implications for the entrepreneurial preparedness of diaspora family business owners and those who wish to become family business owners in a diaspora context. Originality/value This study contributes theoretically through the conceptualization of “family across borders social capital” and “diaspora entrepreneurial preparedness”. It also contributes empirically to the fields of diaspora family business, entrepreneurial learning and diaspora entrepreneurship through new knowledge regarding the role of family across borders social capital in the entrepreneurial preparedness of the diaspora family business owner.

Guest editorial: Migrant entrepreneurship and the roles of family beyond place and space: towards a family resourcefulness across borders perspective

“…The multiple geographical locations might allow migrants to live, work and obtain necessary resources from and through family (Bagwell, 2015) and pursue business opportunities sequentially or even in parallel (Elo et al , 2019; Drori et al , 2009). The migrant’s family plays a role in granting migrant entrepreneurs access to these resources, not only in the country of residence and origin (Karayianni et al , 2021; Li and Johansen, 2021) but also in other countries where migrants have kinship connections (Bagwell, 2015; Bagwell, 2018).…”

“…The second article, “Family across borders social capital and diaspora entrepreneurial preparedness” by Karayianni et al (2021), studies the influences of family ties on the entrepreneurial preparedness of the Cypriot diaspora family business owners in Australia, South Africa, the UK and the USA. Their results show that family ties across borders play an important role in diaspora family business owners’ entrepreneurial preparedness.…”

“…Refugees' higher level of family embeddedness helps partially to overcome migrant disadvantages in the country of residence. The co-location of refugees in an ethnic enclave also lowers the risk of becoming unemployed Karayianni et al (2021) Contributes to our understanding of the significant role of family ties across borders for Cypriot diaspora family business owners' entrepreneurial preparedness in the UK, USA, South Africa and Australia. Hidden values deriving from the family across borders drive the diaspora family business owners to learn from self-reflection and become entrepreneurially prepared Manik et al (2021) Contribution lies in the role of family and external partners in the running of ethnic enterprises at start-up and growth phases.…”

The role of the diaspora in international sport entrepreneurship

“…The economic influence of diaspora on international entrepreneurship patterns is well documented (Karayianni, Hadjielieas, & Glyptis, 2021). This is due to the need for multiple stakeholders to collaborate on joint projects using embedded network relationships (Jafari-Sadeghi, Nkongolo-Bakenda, Anderson, & Dana, 2019).…”

Cash Flow Management Challenges Faced by Small Family-Owned Businesses in Zimbabwe

“…Moreover, it has been observed that cash flow management for family firms has not been easy, especially after the outbreak of the deadly disease, COVID-19, around the world (Kraus et al, 2020;Ward, 2020). Critical scrutiny of the available family business studies reveals that many recent studies are done from corporate governance and succession planning perspectives (Ferrari, 2021;Karayianni, Hadjielias, & Glyptis, 2021;Udomkit, Kittidusadee, & Schreier, 2021;Wu, Coleman, Rahaman, & Edziah, 2020;Yu-Thompson, Lu-Andrews, & Fu, 2016). Shockingly, according to the researchers' best knowledge, meager scholarly attention has been observed when it comes to financial management challenges faced by family businesses.…”