Balancing governance and management in family farming businesses with multiple properties : A dissertation submitted in a partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Professional Studies at Lincoln University

Abstract

This dissertation aims to build a conceptual model for explaining the critical success factors required for family farming businesses with multiple properties to balance governance and management. This is an area of relevance for the following reasons; the average size of farms in New Zealand has increased steadily over time (Statistics New Zealand, 2002). This increase in size has frequently been accompanied by an increase in the complexity of the farming business, both from a physical and a business perspective. It has also become increasingly common for farming families to own multiple properties. These farming families have been faced with an important issue, how much time should be spent working 'on the business' verses how much time should be spent working 'in the business?' What should the balance between governance and management be?