Was hält die Unternehmerfamilie zusammen?

In his lecture „What Holds an Entrepreneurial Family Together?“ (2021), Prof. Dr Heiko Kleve explains how entrepreneurial families can actively shape tradition and change. The focus is on the question of which principles strengthen the cohesion of an entrepreneurial family and how the combination of family, ownership and business gives rise to a distinct social system.

This article presents six fundamental system rules: belonging, reciprocity, growth, reproduction, immunity and individuation. These rules help to understand how entrepreneurial families can clarify membership, balance giving and taking, recognise tradition, enable innovation, value commitment and make constructive use of individual differences.

The presentation thus offers a concise theoretical framework for entrepreneurial families wishing to reflect on their cohesion and further develop their family governance. It becomes clear that stability arises not only from formal rules, but also from genuine relationships, mutual recognition and a conscious balance between preservation and renewal.