Transformations  in
Business & Economics

STRATEGIC CHANGE AND FIRM PERFORMANCE USING THE fsQCA METHOD: A CASE STUDY OF CHINESE FAMILY FIRMS⁸
Na Zhao, Weixiao Gao, Yukun Jiang

ABSTRACT: Strategic change is an important means for family firms to maintain their sustainable competitive advantage. However, how to match the persistence and the conformity of strategic change under different institutional logics and different resource endowments in order to bring high performance is a complex research question. Based on Institutional Theory, using fsQCA to test the configuration effects of institutional logics, strategic change, organizational slack, and CEO’s power on firm performance. The results suggest that family firms seek strategic stability and strategic non-conformity under strong governmental logic, and seek strategic change and strategic conformity under strong market logic or strong family logic for high firm performance; under weak market logic or weak family logic, matching strategic stability with high levels of organizational slack can play a positive role in performance; and regardless of strategic stability or strategic change, matching low levels of CEO’s power to improve family firm performance.

KEYWORDS:  family firms, institutional logic, strategic change, firm performance, fsQCA.

JEL classification:  M10

⁸Acknowledgments:  This research was supported by the fund of the "Belt and Road” National Audit Institute of Nanjing Audit University in 2022; the Superior Discipline Construction Project of Jiangsu Colleges and Universities of China; Jiangsu Provincial Social Science Foundation Youth Project of China (No.22GLC004).