Fulfillment or status: Job seekers’ reward expectations towards family and non-family employers

Annika Ehlers, Ryan Rumble, Claudia Binz Astrachan and Massimo Baù

Journal of Family Business Strategy, 2024, vol. 15, issue 4

Abstract: Limited anecdotal and empirical evidence suggests that family ownership status – whether a company is family-owned or publicly held – may influence job seekers’ intentions to apply. Drawing from the theory of person-organization fit and utilizing qualitative comparative analysis (QCA), we conducted an exploratory study analyzing survey data from 756 senior-level job seekers in Switzerland. Our analysis identified distinct cohorts of job seekers who consistently applied to family-owned versus non-family-owned companies. We discovered two profiles of applicants who seem to favor family employers: Fulfillment Seekers and Reward Seekers. Despite their differences, both profiles share an intrinsic need for praise. In contrast, we identified one profile of non-family firm applicants, Hero Followers, who prioritize neither praise nor pride but have a strong desire to work for an admired superior – the very thing Fulfillment Seekers and Reward Seekers deprioritize. Our findings suggest that distinct groups of job seekers are motivated by different reward combinations: Pay, Perks, Personas, Pride, which they expect to find in either family or non-family companies. Family firms could benefit from emphasizing these rewards in their recruitment processes, compensation schemes, and employer branding strategies.

Keywords: Family Business; Employer Branding; Person-Organization Fit; Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA) (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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DOI: 10.1016/j.jfbs.2024.100634

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