Learning through interactions with outside directors in familybusiness boards of directors: a dynamic capabilities perspective

This article focuses on the dynamics and interactions of Outside Directors with family members within the Board of Directors. Based on an empirical study of two French family businesses, we qualitatively explore and extend the role of Outside Directors as catalysts for learning and building dynamic capabilities. We highlight that the emergence of shared beliefs and shared new practices on the board without threatening the family's place in the organization follows a threephase learning process; 1) Difference between professional and cognitive learning, the informative step; 2) Cognitive learning actions, this is the actions of the Outside Directors become less informative and more transformative. The Outside Directors share more than they train; 3) From cognitive learning to behavioral learning.