EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT IN FAMILY AND NON-FAMILY FIRMS Lindos Daou Full time lecturer, Ph.D, researcher Andre Azoury Associate Professor

OBJECTIVE This study to aims is to define the standards that affect positively employee engagement in family firms and non-family firms and to make an interpretation about the commitment process in both firms. 2

RESEARCH QUESTION To what extent is employee engagement different between family firms and non- family firms and what are the reasons that motivate employees to maintain a positive commitment toward the company? 3

THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK 4 Well-being of employees is essential for the organizational performance and satisfied customers Non-engaged employees focus on tasks rather than outcomes and goals

RESEARCH FINDINGS/INSIGHTS Empirical results based on a longitudinal sample of 60 employees working in family and non-family firms showed that: (1)family firm employees have higher commitment, better psychological climate and greater compensation than non-family firms; (2)Communication registers higher records in non-family firms; (3)A significant relation exists between family firms and employee engagement. 4

THEORETICAL/ACADEMIC IMPLICATIONS Psychological climate influences the well-being of every individual in the Lebanese society Compensation issues has become a crucial especially during the Lebanese economic crisis. Communication has proven to have low impact on worker’s engagement because the upper management in family firms is very important where the owner can play the role of “the one man show”. 5

PRACTITIONER/POLICY IMPLICATIONS This study lead us to find different drivers for engagement in the region that could have significant effect on employee behavior; Importance of the Human Resources role and practices in non-family firms propose creative strategies to reduce turnover and leading to a stronger employee engagement and commitment. 6

CONTRIBUTION TO THE SCIENTIFIC COMMUNITY Conferences 1.Daou L. & Azoury A.(2014), Employee engagement in family and non-family firms, LAAS (Lebanese Association for the advancement of Science) Conference, March Daou L. & Azoury A.(2014), Employee engagement in family and non-family firms, International Colloquium on Corporate Governance across Ethics, Culture & Citizenship; What to give and what to expect? USEK, Lebanon, April