When values matter more than survival, how far will a family firm go?

In the world of business strategy, we’re used to hearing about risk-taking, turnaround efforts, and resilience. But there’s a different, darker strategic behavior that sometimes emerges when the survival of a family business feels threatened: organizational brinkmanship. This isn’t just about taking a bold move or resisting change—it’s about walking up to the edge of the cliff, fully aware of the fall, and daring an opponent to come with you.

Drawing inspiration from international diplomacy, where brinkmanship has been used as a tactic between superpowers, this article introduces its organizational counterpart—particularly in the context of family businesses, where the personal and the professional are deeply entangled. Based on the work of Smith, Nordqvist, De Massis, and Miller (2021), the study outlines a model of how and why family firms might willingly escalate a conflict—even at the risk of their own survival.

What We Studied

This research builds a conceptual model of organizational brinkmanship, focusing specifically on how family businesses respond to existential external threats. Using illustrative case examples such as:

• The Washington Post (a family firm) publishing the Pentagon Papers in defiance of government pressure
• Archway Sheet Metals (ASM) resisting displacement by Tottenham Hotspur FC’s stadium redevelopment

…the authors explore the emotional, structural, and historical drivers behind extreme decision-making.

The study applies socioemotional wealth (SEW) theory and insights from behavioral economics, political science, and crisis management to explain the steps that escalate a conflict from appeasement to brinkmanship.

Key Insights

1. Brinkmanship Requires a Real Adversary and a Clear Threat

Organizational brinkmanship begins with an external threat—such as forced relocation, public scrutiny, or regulatory action—that is perceived as threatening the family’s control, identity, or existence. Crucially, the threat must involve an adversary. Unlike general risk-taking, brinkmanship always involves a standoff with another party.

2. Family Firms Hold Non-Negotiable Values

In family businesses, success isn’t measured solely in profit. Many are deeply attached to non-economic goals: passing the business to the next generation, maintaining their community presence, or preserving a century-old legacy. These values are often non-negotiable—and any threat to them can feel like a threat to the family itself.

3. Historical and Current Control Drive Escalation

Brinkmanship is more likely when both historical family control (e.g., succession, place attachment) and current control (e.g., concentrated ownership, management dominance) are at risk. These dual threats can lead families to escalate even when conventional logic suggests retreat.

4. Defensive First, Aggressive Only If Necessary

Family firms usually try appeasement or negotiation first. Only after these attempts fail—and when threats to both legacy and control remain unresolved—do they consider brinkmanship. It’s not an impulsive act but a last resort.

5. Emotional Drivers Intensify the Response

Unlike publicly traded firms with diffuse ownership, family businesses are often emotionally bound to the firm. These emotions can lead to escalated commitments—even when the odds of success are slim. The firm becomes a battlefield for identity, belonging, and pride.

6. Brinkmanship Involves Willingness to Self-Harm

To make threats credible, firms must be willing to incur damage themselves. This “shared danger” raises the stakes and can force adversaries to back down—but it also means brinkmanship is inherently risky.

Takeaways for Family Businesses

1. Recognize the Emotional Weight of Strategic Decisions

Understand that responses to threats are not purely rational in family firms. Emotional attachment and identity shape decision-making. Acknowledge and make space for emotional processing when faced with existential challenges.

2. Monitor for Early Signs of Brinkmanship

Watch for language and behavior that reflects a “we’ll go down fighting” mentality. Identify whether both historical legacy and current control are being threatened. This combination often predicts escalation.

3. Use Outside Advisors to Counterbalance Emotion

Engaging non-family board members or advisors can help temper emotionally charged decisions. They provide alternative perspectives and may help avoid destructive escalation.

4. Train Next Generations for Crisis Thinking

Future family leaders should be taught how to distinguish between defensible values and emotional rigidity. Education in negotiation, emotional intelligence, and conflict resolution is vital.

5. Develop Pre-Threat Protocols

Establish strategic contingency plans before crises arise. Clarify who makes decisions during conflicts and how to weigh emotional and business goals under pressure.

Impact and Broader Implications

This research reframes how we think about strategy in family firms. Rather than always being conservative and risk-averse, these businesses may become risk-seeking in the face of existential threats. This behavior—organizational brinkmanship—offers a new lens through which to analyze past family business decisions and prepare for future ones.

For policymakers and advisors, understanding this behavior is critical. Regulatory action or urban planning decisions that disrupt legacy businesses must account for the possibility of aggressive, emotionally charged resistance. Likewise, legal and financial advisors should be attuned to brinkmanship when advising family businesses during crises.

Recommendations

• Do a "control and legacy" audit: Regularly assess how emotionally attached the family is to specific places, roles, or traditions.
• Document deal-breakers: Know which values the family would never compromise on—and build strategies to protect or reconsider them.
• Scenario-test exit paths: Could the business step back without damage? If not, plan for escalations with logic, not just emotion.
• Research your adversary: Brinkmanship involves perception—understand how your counterpart might react under pressure.

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