The drama surrounding Sumner Redstone and the corporate governance of Viacom Inc. hasn’t been an endorsement for publicly held companies controlled by a single family.

Redstone and his daughter Shari agreed on a settlement Thursday that will result in the departure of Viacom Inc.’s beleaguered Chief Executive Philippe Dauman and the installation of new board members. Both moves are aimed at ending the uncertainty over future leadership at the company.

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“You have a controlling shareholder who got old and who had a pattern of difficulty dealing with succession,” said Ronald J. Gilson, Stern professor of law and business at Columbia University. “Succession typically takes place before the founder reaches age 93. And it’s usually built into the structure of corporate governance.”

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Gilson agrees that media entrepreneurs’ belief in themselves can outlast their ability to do the job.

“You get these settings where people believe that they matter,” he said. “They may well be right, but there are lots of reasons why the entrepreneur who is just a genius at this stage may not be the right person later on.”