Succession to innovation in family firms: a bibliometric review of 20 years

Purpose This study aims to develop a dynamic, process-oriented understanding of how intergenerational succession reshapes innovation-related decisions and outcomes in family firms. Although previous reviews have examined family-firm innovation and the succession–innovation intersection, the evidence remains fragmented across theoretical perspectives, disciplinary communities, levels of analysis and stages of succession. Design/methodology/approach This study conducts a bibliometric analysis of 246 publications covering the period 2005–2025 in the Web of Science Core Collection. By integrating co-citation analysis, keyword co-occurrence mapping, and temporal evolution analysis, we map the field’s intellectual structure and its thematic development over time. Findings The analysis reveals a cumulative yet increasingly differentiated knowledge structure. Family-centred behavioural and governance logics, particularly socioemotional wealth (SEW), provide the field’s theoretical foundation; knowledge transfer, resource recombination and dynamic capabilities explain organisational renewal during succession; and institutional, internationalisation and sustainability conditions shape its strategic direction. The temporal analysis further identifies a progression from conceptual consolidation, through strategic and organisational diversification, to increasingly specialised capability and decision mechanisms, supporting a process-oriented understanding of succession-related innovation. Originality/value By synthesising this trajectory, the study integrates a fragmented literature and clarifies how family-centred logics, processual mechanisms, and contextual conditions jointly shape innovation during intergenerational succession.