Worldwide companies with a dominant shareholder "on premises" consistently out-perform others. Warren Buffet recently described companies in which the controlling owner is not a manager as "logically…the most effective in ensuring first-class management". He was referring to the evolution of professionalisation in large family owned businesses in the West and extrapolating it to successful corporate performance. In Indian companies, the process of professionalisation has also begun to take shape, throwing up challenges that are both novel and unique.

As global experts in search consulting and leadership with a strong practice in family-owned businesses, Amrop International is committed to management research and to augmenting the body of thought leadership and knowledge on this area of study.

Given the significant shift in management paradigms that is taking place today in Indian companies, we thought it an appropriate time to conduct a study that examined the key issue on which the success of professionalisation hinges – the relationship between Owners and CEOs.

We invited Professor John Ward, one of the world's leading experts on family-managed businesses, and Professor Kavil Ramachandran of the Indian School of Business, Hyderabad to partner with us in designing and leading the study.

This study is intended to provide a firm basis for a discussion on the shared area of responsibility and authority between family executives and external executives where clarity of understanding and thought seems to dim – which we have termed "No-Man's Land".

The study examines the concept of No-Man's Land, discusses the underlying factors that create it and the challenges to minimizing this area and building effective relations between owners and executives. The findings also provide pointers to managing No-Man's Land effectively.

Essentially a qualitative study, it seeks to capture the views of family representatives occupying full-time positions in the company (owner-executives or OEs) and external executives (EEs) at the most senior levels.

At least one OE and one EE each was interviewed in 29 Indian companies to provide both perceptions of key issues. In all, 70 executives were interviewed personally, with each interview lasting between 45 minutes and two hours.

We would like to express our gratitude to all owners and executives who participated in this study. Their thoughtful and insightful responses have enriched the understanding of a dynamic and significant issue that confronts Indian management today.

Our sincere thanks also to Professor Ward for his invaluable insights in helping us shape the contours of this study, and to Professor Ramachandran for his assistance in conducting this study and providing the interpretative framework for discussion.