In summary, previous research has elaborated on some aspects of the CFO role in FBs and
underscored the important role that the CFO might play to mitigate financial distress and to
build a performance-enhancing management team together with a family CEO. However, a
comprehensive picture of the roles and responsibilities of CFOs in FBs has not yet evolved.
10
Furthermore, some findings seem to be contradictory, and most importantly, to date,
research has only focused on within-FB comparisons (e.g., between family CFOs and nonfamily
CFOs), but has not drawn comparisons with the CFO’s role in NFBs.