Family firms are the most common form of business structure; they employ many millions of people; and they generate a considerable amount of the world’s wealth. One measure of their importance is the proportion of registered companies that are family controlled—a figure which ranges from more than 50 percent in the European Union (EU) to between 65 percent and 90 percent in Latin America and over 95 percent in the US. Indeed, they often deliver better returns than companies with a wider shareholder base.

Incredibly, very few attempts have been made to gauge the opinions of family business leaders worldwide. Until now. PricewaterhouseCoopers' Family Business Survey—the fourth conducted since 2002 and the first to cover the global scene—aims to redress this oversight.

The survey explores the key areas of interest to family firms, including the main corporate challenges they face: ownership, succession planning and the remuneration of management; conflict resolution; and the economic and regulatory changes that are highest on their list of priorities. It draws on the views of top management in 1,454 small and midsized family businesses operating in a wide range of sectors in 28 countries.