Accountants’ role in the management of succession. Empirical evidence from Italy

In this paper the approach that accountants take when providing consulting services to family businesses involved in a succession process is analyzed. The data for this study was collected through a questionnaire involving 175 Italian accountants. They responded to questions regarding their experience, attitudes, behaviors and opinions on family business succession. The results show that accountants are primarily concerned with technical elements and solutions (hard issues) and rarely pay attention to relationships and communication among family members (soft issues). Accountants also underestimate the importance of the ability to empathise with the family business owner and other family members. Although the literature on family business succession recommends that accountants collaborate with other advisors from different backgrounds, most accountants work alone or with other experts on hard issues (notaries, lawyers, and bankers). All these aspects may cause a mismatch between family businesses' expectations and accountants' professional practice. This study offers some guidance for the accountants' professional practice. Although accountants' technical skills are undoubtedly crucial when dealing with the hard issues of succession, the soft issues are often the real problem to deal with or the most challenging. Accountants should help less informed entrepreneurs gain a better understanding of succession and adopt a holistic approach, integrating all dimensions and perspectives involved. This means that succession should be approached by adopting an interdisciplinary approach. Research on the role of external actors in family succession primarily examines the perspective of the family business. This study offers an alternative approach by adopting the perspective of accountants to analyze their role and experience in succession management.