Accountants’ role in the management of succession: empirical evidence from Italy

Purpose The purpose of the this paper is to understand what is the approach adopted by accountants when they provide advisory services to family businesses (FBs) involved in a succession process. Design/methodology/approach Data for this study were collected through a questionnaire survey involving 175 Italian certified accountants. They answered questions about their experience, attitudes, behaviors and opinions toward FB succession. Findings Accountants are mostly concerned with technical elements and solutions (hard issues) and are less careful about relations and communication between family members (soft issues). They also underestimate the relevance of the ability to empathize with the FB owner and other family members. Despite the literature recommendations to collaborate with other advisors from a variety of backgrounds, most of the accountants work on their own or with other experts on hard issues (notaries, lawyers and bank operators). All these aspects may cause a discrepancy between FBs’ expectations and accountant’s professional practice. Research limitations/implications Results are mainly descriptive and are limited to the perceptions and experiences of accountants interviewed. Practical implications This study offers some guidance for the accountant’s professional practice. Even if accountant’s technical skills are undoubtedly essential when addressing the main hard issues posed by succession, soft issues often represent the real problem to be managed or the most complicated one. Accountants should help less aware entrepreneurs to acquire a better knowledge of succession and to adopt a holistic approach, integrating every dimension and perspective involved. This means that succession should be tackled through an interdisciplinary approach. Originality/value The research on the role of external subjects in family succession examines, above all, the perspective of the FB. This study offers an alternative approach, adopting the accountant’s perspective to analyze his/her role and experience in the management of succession.