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To attend a gap in the existing literature, this research explores what the children or the children's children currently involved in the family business had to experience before they entered the business on a full-time basis. In the article, that stage is cal led formation process. Supported by a qualitative methodology, the study of four cases of Colombian family businesses shows that three dimensions of formation and five influencing elements comprise that stage. The three dimensions of formation are formation in values, formation in knowledge, and formation in leadership. The five influencing elements in forming descendents are the family, the business, the market, the descendents themselves, and the society. Aided by the perspective of succession, as well as by those of resources and capabilities, the study arguments contribute to creating a framework for future research on succession in family businesses, in particular regarding the formation of descendents or regarding later stages, such as the involvement and feeling of ownership that come with the first full-time position. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]