The global economic landscape is still recovering from the prolonged economic crisis which has significantly affected consumer’s buying power, hit commodity prices, as well as hampered growth in general. However, in the midst of the crisis, research has shown that family businesses remain a strong and resilient force which helps propel the economy. A Harvard Business Review article argued that family businesses tend to be more frugal and enter recessionary period with leaner cost structures.

According to McKinsey, in emerging economies, family businesses account for approximately 60 percent of the private-sector companies with revenues of $1 billion or more, compared to less than one-third ofthe companies in the S&P 500. However, the upward trend for family businesses as a significant part of their national economies in emerging markets remain strong, and will represent nearly 40 percent of the world’s largest companies in 2025, up from 15 percent in 2010, which shows the growing importance of understanding family business and its sustainability in the long run in the midst of the current global scenario.

In this regard, the International Conference on Family Business and Entrepreneurship (ICFBE) 2017 is specifically established to be a leading international conference on family business and entrepreneurship in the region. The conference is championed byPresident University, a world-class higher education institution in Indonesia which was established to become a reputable research and development center in the region and to set a new benchmark in Indonesian higher education.

This conference aims to gather researchers and practitioners to critically share and discuss the latest empirical, conceptual, as well as theoretical findings and trends in the field of family business, entrepreneurship, strategic management, among others.