Family Businesses: The Power of Stories and Tradition

All family businesses have a story to tell, a legend to fulfill, and a tragedy to lament, highlighting how stories help articulate organizational culture and reflect shared values, myths, and lessons learned across generations. Discua pointed out that family narratives help connect the present with memories and allow one to think about the path to be followed. He also highlighted the value of business lobbies as spaces for enrichment and connection, and emphasized the usefulness of shared stories among family businesses as a source of reflection on governance and decision-making. "The best thing is to be able to believe in a story: to know where we come from, what our roots are, what worked, what didn't, and why to move forward," he concluded. Professor Alexandra Dawson, in turn, emphasized the value of narratives as an essential tool to deeply understand the dynamics of family businesses. Communication, transparency, and a sense of belonging have been identified as key elements to strengthen continuity and address the complexity of business decisions beyond the rational. She advocated the need to address uncomfortable issues, always prioritizing the business, and highlighting the value of humility and teamwork as a legacy transmitted for over a century. To conclude, Alejandro Escribá shared a personal reflection on the values inherited from his father, noting that "those values of not causing harm have been deeply rooted in me; it's a story of failure, but of success in learning." The conclusions of the event have highlighted the transformative power of family stories in business. As a central message, it has advocated for "innovation through tradition," remembering that the goal is not to paralyze the organization, but to transmit its story within its own evolution. Following the academic presentations, the event continued with a roundtable that allowed contrasting the research vision with the direct experience of family entrepreneurs. Moderated by Alejandro Escribá, director of the Family Business Chair at the University of Valencia, the session featured Ignacio Alberola (CEO of Family Office La Española), Fátima Zamorano (vice president of the AZA Group), and Federico Martín (CEO of Transportes Martín), along with professors Allan Discua and Alexandra Dawson. Ignacio Alberola shared the trajectory of La Española, a family business with over 85 years of history, highlighting how tradition has been the engine of its technological transformation. He also stressed the importance of preparing new generations, creating spaces where they can gather the knowledge of their predecessors and develop their full potential. Fátima Zamorano, in turn, provided the perspective of the AZA Group, a family business with over 111 years of activity. She also emphasized that the ability to face and solve problems is a key factor in the continuity and longevity of companies. The event brought together two international reference figures in the analysis of family narratives: Allan Discua, from Lancaster University, and Alexandra Dawson, from Concordia University. Hortensia Roig, president of EDEM Business School, inaugurated the eighth edition of the "Family Businesses in the World" event, held once again at EDEM's facilities, to debate the impact of family narratives as a strategic tool in family business. She also highlighted that "narratives can help interpret roles and behaviors over time, strengthen continuity, and preserve identity and shared values across generations." Dawson focused on the importance of motivating new generations, promoting trust in successors, integrating them into decision-making, and offering them spaces for autonomy and belonging. It was emphasized that well-constructed narratives not only explain behaviors but also help consolidate values, connect generations, and build a legacy. "Entrepreneurs do not tell about their mistakes, and one can learn a lot from them. Thus, he focused on the importance of sharing the lessons that arise from mistakes, a practice not common among entrepreneurs. Both experts shared the latest findings of their research, offering a global and current perspective on the role of stories in family business. The Family Business Chair of the University of Valencia (CEFUV), promoted by the Valencian Business Association (AVE), EDEM Business School, the Valencian Institute for the Study of the Family Business (IVEFA), the Family Business Institute (IEF), and the University of Valencia (UV), and with the collaboration of CaixaBank and Broseta, organized today the VIII International Conference of Family Businesses, with the aim of presenting and debating the impact of family narratives in the family business. You have to tell the family what has not worked," he pointed out. "Narratives can discover what numbers alone cannot, revealing hidden dynamics such as emotions, motivations, identities, and relationships in families and their businesses," he stated. "La Española, guided by the innovative vision of the Alberola family, has made the tradition of stuffing olives a motor for open innovation and technological transformation, staying at the forefront of the sector and reaffirming its motto – An Olive Like No Other," he stated. Federico Martín, a representative of the fourth generation of Transportes Martín, focused on professionalization and the rooting of workers as pillars of continuity.