Exploring the intersection of e-commerce and context in Family Business in China: the effects on organisational form and identity

This chapter melds these interests of understanding how the context of e-Commerce and family business affects organisational form and subsequently organisational identity by integrating a narrative about the development of family business and e-Commerce in China with an exploratory analysis of two Chinese family businesses. Institutional theory informs this discussion (Scott, 2008: Suddaby, Elsbach, Greenwood, Meyer and Zilber, 2010). After describing why businesses adopt e-Commerce, and illustrating the contextual conditions in China that foster the development of private enterprises such as family businesses, and the adoption of e-Commerce, the chapter subsequently explores the question “given the context of “newness” of both private enterprises such as family businesses and e-Commerce in China, how is the organisational form of family businesses in China affected by the adoption of e-Commerce?” The chapter thus makes a contribution to the edited collection by providing some insights about how institutional contexts create both opportunity and challenges for the sustainability of the family business model in the digital economy