家族商号传承与治理制度的演变——-以胡开文墨业“分产不分业”为例

“诸子均分”的继承传统常被认为是造成中国家族企业“富不过三代”的重要原因,但实际上中国历史上并不乏长寿家族商号。基于史料,通过从制度层面深入分析延续近两百年、实现家族内部数代传承的胡开文墨业案例,可知“分产不分业”的继承模式是胡氏家族商号实现数代传承的重要原因,这种传承模式是在资本诸子“均分”的前提下,商号的经营实行“不分”,实际上实现了家族商号的“单传”。这种传承模式在明清商人家族中并非个例,其形成有着制度和非制度两方面的因素。“分产不分业”本质上在产权层面实现了所有权和经营权一定程度上的分离,进而促进了合伙制和聘用代理人等有利于传承的制度的形成,这是历史上中国家族企业现代性的体现。

The Institutional Changes in the Succession and Governance of Family Business : A Case Study of the Succession of Hukaiwen Ink Family Business

In recent years,ranking lists like″The World's Oldest Family Companies″have attracted the attention of Chinese entrepreneurs and academics although not a single Chinese family firm is included in the lists .In contrast to the″Primogeniture″tradition in Japan and some European countries,the″Coparcenary″tradition in China has been considered as an important reason for the short life of Chinese family businesses (like a Chinese proverb goes,″from rags to riches and back to rags in three generations″) .However,the fact is that there was a considerable number of long-surviving family businesses in Chinese history,but for reasons of war and political movements,they lost control over their businesses .For example,the Hukaiwen family's ink business,which was founded by Hu Tianzhu from Huizhou in the period of Qianlong Emperor,was one of the four most renowned family-run ink businesses during the Qing Dynasty . Even today,Hukaiwen is a famous ink brand and can be seen in cities all over China .The Hu family business successfully achieved family inheritance for six generations,becoming the most influential ink brand in the late Qing Dynasty .Therefore,the main characteristics and elements of the successful inheritance of long-surviving family businesses like Hukaiwen Ink are worth studying today . We obtained the primary sources,such as the Hushi Jiushu (Book of the Division of Property of the Hu Family) and Hu Genealogy in our field study .Based on an in-depth analysis of the materials,combined with a case study and the analytical paradigm of institutional economics,the present research concludes that the most important factor in the successful inheritance of the Hu family business across six generations can be summarized as″dividing the property without dividing the business .″To be more specific,the land,real estate,retail shops and other family property were converted to eight shares according to their current prices,after which the eight sons of Hu Tianzhu inherited the property equally in the form of capital .A partnership system was thus formed within the family business,which also conformed to the ″Coparcenary″tradition .Meanwhile,Hushi Jiushu,according to which only the second and seventh sons inherited the two ink factories,also regulated the operation of the family business . This practice continued the″Primogeniture″in the management and operation of the two factories .Besides the shares they held,the two sons received a salary for managing and operating the business .This arrangement led to further institutional changes in the management of the family firm .In order to keep control over the business,these two heirs hired family or non-family agents to manage the business while the ownership remained with the core family members .In practice,to some extent,this arrangement realized the separation of ownership and management in terms of property rights .This institutional arrangement and the changes in the management structure are good examples of the modernity of Chinese family businesses . There is growing concern about the succession issue in Chinese family-run businesses today,as the second generation of entrepreneurs is maturing and becoming ready to take charge .The present organizational and management systems in Western family businesses are closely related to their institutional and non-institutional factors such as history and culture .Likewise,Chinese family businesses are also faced with issues like route dependence in the Chinese history and culture .More research into the successful inheritance of family businesses in the Chinese history,together with lessons from Western enterprise systems,will have implications for the succession of contemporary family businesses in China .The successful inheritance of the Hu family business is not an isolated case;instead,it was a common phenomenon in Chinese history .The historical materials of this research are limited in number,and there remains great scope for further research into this topic .