Corvinus Center of Family Business
Welcome on the webpage of the Center of Family Business!
The Center of Family Business was established by three parties, the Péter Horváth Foundation (Péter Horváth Stiftung), the Foundation for Family Businesses (Stiftung Familienunternehmen) and by the Corvinus University of Budapest in 2016 December and started its operation in 2017.Our mission is to balance and energize the corporate, management, and family aspects of Family Owned Businesses to help them grow successfully. The Center provides its research, educational activity and event management for the whole Hungarian and international family business community irrespectively of age and industry.
Corvinus Center of Family Business aims to balance and energize the corporate, management, and family aspects of Family Owned Businesses to help them grow successfully.
CFB fullfils its mission by:
- Enabling international transfer and sharing of knowledge, research and teaching
- Disseminating relevant knowledge and experience in a holistic approach
- Involving all kind of disciplines and sciences
Our goals:
- To make a measureable impact on the number, size, economic contribution, efficiency, effectiveness and sustainability of Hungarian family businesses inside and outside of the country boundaries.
- To develop and provide research, training and potentially further professional services for family businesses and their stakeholders.
- To set up a knowledge transfer platform to foster the direct exchange of family business related experiences both locally and internationally.
- To achieve international recognition by maintaining the same professional standards as its peer organizations through adopting research topics that serve global and local interests, and through joining to international research projects and programs.
Advisory Board
Honorary Chairman
Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. mult. Péter Horváth (*3 February 1937 – †4 June 2022)
Prof. Péter Horváth was Head of the Controlling Department at the University of Stuttgart, founder of the international management consulting firm Horváth & Partners and the International Performance Research Institute (IPRI). It was his suggestion in 2015 to establish the Corvinus Family Companies Center. His foundation, the Péter Horváth Stiftung, remains one of the main sponsors and professional supporters of the Center.
Chairman
Prof. Dr. Reinhold Mayer, Honorary Professor at the University of Stuttgart, former Partner and Board Member of the international management consulting firm Horváth & Partners, and Member of the Management Board of the Péter Horváth Stiftung.
Members
Dr. Imre Branyiczki, Part-Time Associate Professor of the Institute of Strategy and Management at Corvinus University of Budapest, Head of People at EPAM Hungary and Serbia.
Zsolt Felcsuti, Industrial Investor, Main Shareholder of MPF Holding, Co-Chairman of the Confederation of Hungarian Employers and Industrialists, Adviser to the Hungarian Minister of Finance.
Prof. Rainer Kirchdörfer, Partner of the law firm Hennerkes, Kirchdörfer & Lorz in Stuttgart, Honorary Professor at the University of Witten/Herdecke, Member of the Executive Board of the Stiftung Familienunternehmen.
Dr. Ulrich Stoll, Co-Owner and Vice-Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Festo AG, Member of the Executive Board of the Stiftung Familienunternehmen.
Research Projects
Corvinus University has always been one of the leading institutions in the Hungarian family business research since 1990s. Because of the great variety and complexity of family firms, their research requires composite and integrated approaches.
Hence although the focal point of the Center is the one of the management sciences, we aim to integrate the managerial perspective with psychological and sociological viewpoint. In accordance with our founders’ expectations, our primal research concern relates to medium and large Hungarian family firms.The Center’s research work concentrates on issues of succession, governance and change-adaptation and innovation – these are our dedicated research topics inside the discipline of family business research.
Hungarian Family Business Profile – Succession and governance
The main aim of the project is to explore the ’as is’ situation of the Hungarian family firms to gain an initial „bird view” perspective of these businesses. The research subjects were all Hungarian family firms with an annual turnover between 80 million HUF to 150 billion HUF excluding the ones offering financial services.
With the support of external data collector, a large sample database of 1400 family firms had been built which is representative both in regards to the firms’ geographical location, size and industry. We inspect basic ownership and leadership configurations, the presence of potential transgenerational entrepreneurial heritage, succession intentions as well as firms’ economic performance. More detailed, fine-tuned data collection is also conducted on non-financial family aspirations, succession and governance situation and on professionalization of these companies.
Participants: Dr. Attila Wieszt, Dr. György Drótos, Éva Vajda
Staff
Director of the Center
E épület, 103
Phone: +36 1 482 5217 • Ext: 5179
E épület, 109
Phone: +36 1 482 5128 • Ext: 5128
E épület, 383/109, 383
Ext: 5187
E épület, 109
Phone: +36 1 482 5128 • Ext: 5128
E épület, 246.1
E épület, 342
Phone: +36 1 482 5488 • Ext: 5488
Publications
How should we professionalise our business? – Experiences from a longitudinal case study of a medium-sized family business in Hungary
Kárpáti Zoltán & Drótos György (2023).
How should we professionalise our business? Experiences from a longitudinal case study of a medium-sized family business in Hungary. Budapest Management Review, 54(2), 53–67. (in Hungarian) https://doi.org/10.14267/VEZTUD.2023.02.05
BLOOD IS THICKER THAN WATER – GOVERNANCE AND SUCCESSION IN FAMILY BUSINESSES
Máté Baksa / Corvinus Kioszk
The Center of Family Business of the Corvinus University of Budapest held an international conference on 22 March entitled „Governance and Succession in Family Businesses – Where are we now and what can we learn from international practice?”
STAY IN THE FAMILY!
Toma Franciska / Corvinus Media
The situation of family businesses is not only a business issue but also a social matter. Due to the multidisciplinary nature of the topic, it can be relevant to all three faculties of the Corvinus University of Budapest as well as other areas outside of the university. Interview with Prof. Dr. György Drótos.
IN THE TRACES OF FAMILY BUSINESSES
Máté Baksa / Corvinus Kioszk
Although family-owned medium and large enterprises are important actors of the Hungarian economy and society, relatively little is known about them. Interview with Dr. Attila Wieszt.
PROFESSIONALIZATION OF FAMILY FIRMS – A SYSTEMATIC LITERATURE REVIEW
- Kárpáti Zoltán (2021). Professionalization of Family Firms – A systematic literature Review. Budapest management Review, 52:3 pp. 53-65. 13 p. (in Hungarian)
SUCCESSION PROCESS OF HUNGARIAN FAMILY FIRMS
- Wieszt, Attila and Martos, Tamás and Sallay, Viola and Varga, Szabolcs and Vékás, Péter (2021). Családi vállalatok utódlása Magyarországon. Project Report. Budapesti Corvinus Egyetem, Budapest. (in Hungarian)
- Wieszt, Attila and Martos, Tamás and Sallay, Viola (2021). Családi vállalatok utódlása Magyarországon. Kutatási jelentés összefoglalója. Project Report. Budapesti Corvinus Egyetem, Budapest. (in Hungarian)
Network
Contact
Institute of Management, Corvinus University of Budapest
1093 Budapest, Fővám tér 8.
Office:
E building, 109
+36-1-482-5263
cfb@uni-corvinus.hu
