Untangling the relationship between strategic consistency and organizational performance: An empirical analysis of moderator variables

2016 ◽  
Vol 23 (4) ◽  
pp. 483-503 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chin-Shien Lin ◽  
Van Thac Dang

AbstractResearchers have advocated various perspectives on the relationship between strategic consistency and organizational performance. This inconclusive debate has created an inadequate theoretical foundation in strategic consistency literature. Therefore, the present study uses strategic planning, strategic change, upper echelons theory, and other literature as the theoretical foundation to empirically examine the moderating roles of organizational slack, environmental dynamism, and top management team attributes in the relationship between strategic consistency and organizational performance. Using 439 electronics companies in the Taiwanese stock market as sample data, the empirical results show that organizational slack, environmental dynamism, top management team tenure, and top management team tenure heterogeneity moderate the relationship between strategic consistency and organizational performance.

2018 ◽  
Vol 46 (12) ◽  
pp. 2063-2079 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yawei Liu ◽  
M. Awais Gulzar ◽  
Zhaoguo Zhang ◽  
Qingxiang Yang

Using Chinese listed firms' data from 2008 to 2012, we explored, on the basis of upper echelons theory, whether and how top management team (TMT) age heterogeneity affects corporate social responsibility (CSR) and if TMT interaction and TMT education moderate this relationship. Results revealed an inverted U-shaped relationship between TMT age heterogeneity and CSR, in which TMT interaction played a moderating role; however, TMT education did not moderate the relationship. These results are helpful and significant for the understanding of CSR strategy, and for the improvement of human resource management.


2019 ◽  
Vol 26 (3) ◽  
pp. 304-318 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jie Wu ◽  
Orlando C. Richard ◽  
Xinhe Zhang ◽  
Craig Macaulay

Top management team (TMT) heterogeneity research has not yet clearly revealed whether surface-level diversity (i.e., national culture, gender, age) contributes to or detracts from a firm’s financial performance and has not focused on how strategic change frequency (number international diversification or refocusing activities) serves as an intervening mechanism. Based on a sample of 1,993 firms between 2003 and 2015, we examine the mediating role of strategic change frequency in the relationship between surface-level diversity and long-term firm performance. Grounded in the upper echelons perspective, we find that TMT surface-level diversity increases rather than decreases strategic change frequency. Furthermore, our results are consistent with our hypothesized positive relationship between strategic change frequency and long-term firm performance. More important, we also find support for a longitudinal-based mediation model in which strategic change frequency in terms of diversification/refocusing actions (Time 2) transmits the positive effect of TMT surface-level diversity (Time 1) to long-term financial performance (Time 3) without accounting for any moderated conditions suggesting that mediation models warrant more utilization in the upper echelons research and internationalization research domains. Implications for the upper echelons theory in a more global world as if relates to the often unexplored surface-level diversity are offered.


2020 ◽  
pp. 1-17
Author(s):  
J. Ruben Boling ◽  
Mariangela Vecchiarini

Abstract The current study draws on the upper echelons theory to examine the nature of the relationship between top management team (TMT) tenure and a firm's level of entrepreneurial orientation (EO). We find evidence of an inverted-U relationship between TMT tenure and EO using data from firms across three industries with varied industry dynamics. We further introduce a contingency element by demonstrating that TMT industry background heterogeneity moderates the relationship between TMT tenure and EO, where the inverted U-shaped relationship will be more pronounced when the heterogeneity is low and will flatten when the heterogeneity is high. The findings demonstrate the complexity CEOs and governing bodies face while shaping a diverse TMT that can affect EO.


2019 ◽  
Vol 47 (7) ◽  
pp. 1-15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shengli Dai ◽  
Yingchun Li ◽  
Wei Zhang

Management practitioners and leadership experts regard personality traits as important attributes of individual, team, and organizational performance. However, few scholars have studied the inner workings of the performance of a new venture as regards the personality traits of the entrepreneurial top management team (TMT). We investigated 156 entrepreneurial TMTs of new ventures in China's Optical Valley, and found that: (a) the entrepreneurial TMT's extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, and openness to experience all have a positive impact on a new venture's performance, but neuroticism did not; (b) Knowledge integration had a partial mediating effect on the relationship between the TMT's extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, and openness to experience and the performance of the venture; (c) A transformational leadership style of entrepreneurial TMT leaders was found to significantly moderate the relationship between the TMT's extraversion, conscientiousness, and openness to experience and the new venture's performance. The findings not only contribute to theories of entrepreneurial TMT, team personality composition, and knowledge management, but also have practical significance for improving the performance of new ventures.


2022 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yongtao Zhou ◽  
Yi Zhou ◽  
Li Zhang ◽  
Xu Zhao ◽  
Weijing Chen

Patent strategy is increasingly recognized as a vital contributor in promoting core competitiveness of an enterprise. A top management team (TMT) has been indicated as one of the key factors driving changes in patent strategy. Based on upper echelons theory, this study examines how TMT characteristics, including, team diversity, emotional intelligence, and safety climate, influence enterprise patent strategic change and, hence, the business outcome. The data from 930 top managers in 228 enterprises showed that the changes in patent strategies are significantly influenced by the characteristics of top managers. These aforementioned internal TMT factors have diverse effects on the speed and scope of the enterprise patent strategic change, which in turn affects firm performance in a positive and negative way, respectively.


2019 ◽  
Vol 40 (6) ◽  
pp. 987-1009 ◽  
Author(s):  
Orlando Curtae' Richard ◽  
Jie Wu ◽  
Livia Anna Markoczy ◽  
Yunhyung Chung

2017 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 183-195
Author(s):  
Mark Brown ◽  
Barbara Minsky ◽  
Richard Voss ◽  
Eren Ozgen

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relation between countries’ values of individualism/collectivism and organizations’ top management team (TMT) pay structures. Individualistic countries are expected to prefer more hierarchical TMT pay structures and collectivist countries are expected to prefer more egalitarian TMT pay structures. The manuscript also investigates the international implications of the relation between TMT pay structures and organizational performance. Specifically, it is proposed that a country’s level of individualism/collectivism will mediate the relation between TMT pay structure hierarchy and organizational performance. Design/methodology/approach A pooled sample of data from 56 organizations in 12 countries was used to investigate the research questions. Individualism/collectivism was measured using country specific individualism/collectivism scores and top management pay structures were operationalized using Gini coefficients. Organizational performance was evaluated using return on assets. Findings Support was found both for a preference for more hierarchical TMT pay structures in individualistic countries, and that a country’s level of individualism/collectivism mediates the relationship between an organization’s top management’s pay structure and company performance. Originality/value Findings demonstrate that organizations use pay structures consistent with their environments. Results suggest cultural dimensions can contribute to understanding cross-national TMT pay structures and that national culture plays a significant role in the relationship between TMT pay structure and company performance.


2020 ◽  
Vol 15 (7) ◽  
pp. 147
Author(s):  
Wasike Shadrack Mayende ◽  
Owino Odhiambo Joseph

Competing favorably in the market requires finding a perfect fit between a firm’s resources and the business environment. Strategy is the stewardship by top management that aligns organizational resources and capabilities to the environment with the ultimate goal of achieving superior and sustainable performance. The current study was designed to determine the influence of competitive environment on the relationship between top management team characteristics and strategy implementation. The study adopted the descriptive cross-sectional survey design. Data was obtained by administering structured questionnaire mailed to top managers in tea factory companies in Kenya. The moderation test was carried out using the product term of the standardized scores for top management team characteristics and competitive environment respectively. Data was processed through regression analysis. While we demonstrate that top management team characteristics had significant influence on strategy implementation, the results of moderation tests were not statistically significant. Consequently, our hypothesized moderating influence of competitive environment on the relationship between top management team characteristics and strategy implementation was not supported. Our findings raise theoretical questions on whether competitive environment is more relevant during strategy formulation process or execution stage. We conclude that companies implementing strategy in stable competitive environment have predictable implementation of planned strategy. We further conclude that external insulation from competition by umbrella marketing agency reduces the influence of factors within the competitive environment on the relationship between top management team characteristics and strategy implementation. However, the temporary insulation of the firm from competition exposes it to competitive disadvantage in the event that the marketing agency is destabilized by forces both from within and external to it.


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