Family involvement and family firm internationalization: the moderating effects of board experience and geographical distance

Combining the resource-based view and the socio-emotional wealth perspective, we compile a sample of family-owned and -managed firms on the Standard and Poor's (S&P) 500 Index and examine the effect of family involvement on firm internationalization. The results show that the presence of a family member chairing the board impedes internationalization, but that this negative effect is reduced when board members are highly experienced. We also find that cross-generational involvement in the business contributes to internationalization, and that this effect is more pronounced when firms internationalize to geographically distant rather than closer regions. The contributions and implications of this study are also discussed.