scholarly journals The Politics of CEOs

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 ◽  
pp. 1-45 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alma Cohen ◽  
Moshe Hazan ◽  
Roberto Tallarita ◽  
David Weiss

Abstract This article studies the political preferences of chief executive officers (CEOs) of public companies. We use Federal Election Commission records to compile a comprehensive database of the political contributions made by more than 3800 individuals who served as CEOs of Standard & Poor’s 1500 companies between 2000 and 2017. We find a substantial preference for Republican candidates. We identify how this pattern is related to the company’s industry, region, and CEO gender. In addition, we show that companies led by Republican CEOs tend to be less transparent to investors with respect to their political spending. Finally, we discuss the policy implications of our analysis.

2014 ◽  
Vol 26 (2) ◽  
pp. 167-193 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chia-Feng (Jeffrey) Yu

ABSTRACT In the wake of recent financial crises and corporate failures, chief executive officers (CEOs) are often blamed for their overconfidence leading to earnings manipulation and excessive risks. Why is it then that these overconfident CEOs obtain job offers in the first place? This paper presents a novel explanation for the co-existence of CEO overconfidence and earnings manipulation observed in practice. In an agency model with an external capital market, I identify two potential reasons for a board to hire an overconfident CEO and design a contract that accommodates earnings manipulation: an internal motive, directed at maximizing the ex ante firm value, and an external motive, directed at enhancing the interim market valuation of the firm. The flip side, however, is that the firm can be more likely to become insolvent and bear greater risks of bankruptcy. Some policy implications and limitations are also discussed. JEL Classifications: D86; G34; M41.


2017 ◽  
Vol 16 (03) ◽  
pp. 1750022 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chandra Sekhar ◽  
Manoj Patwardhan ◽  
Vishal Vyas

The purpose of this paper is to analyse the causal relation structure among the dimensions of Intellectual Capital (IC) by using the DEMATEL method. In this study, the dimensions of IC comprise human, structural, and relational capital. This study empirically analyses the causal relation structure with a sample of 18 (12 national and 6 multi-national) Information Technology (IT) firms operating in India. The respondents were the experts from IT firms encompassing chief executive officers, general managers, Human Resource (HR) managers, senior managers, and the IT consultants. Decision-Making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory (DEMATEL) method is used for the statistical treatment of the data. On the human, structural, and relational capital fronts, findings of the study suggest that “motivation of the personnel”, “operation process”, “brand value”, respectively, have the maximum causing properties. The study is limited to IT industry of India only. The dimensions of IC will differently trigger the attitude and behaviours of employees relevant for the parent organisation that helps the management to deal with different dynamic circumstances resulting in different outcomes. Study empirically assessed that there are synergy and causal relation structure between the dimensions. Present study contributes to retention and engagement of human capital and prefers potentially important policy implications. Examining the interrelationship among the dimensions of IC in the context of Indian IT is the novel contribution of the present study. Theoretically and empirically assessing the causal interrelationship and addressing the research gaps summarised from the literature will contribute to the IC research.


2020 ◽  
Vol 48 (9) ◽  
pp. 1-12
Author(s):  
Karwan Hamasalih Qadir ◽  
Mehmet Yeşiltaş

Since 2003 the number of small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) has increased exponentially in Iraqi Kurdistan. To facilitate further growth the owners and chief executive officers of these enterprises have sought to improve their leadership skills. This study examined the effect of transactional and transformational leadership styles on organizational commitment and performance in Iraqi Kurdistan SMEs, and the mediating effect of organizational commitment in these relationships. We distributed 530 questionnaires and collected 400 valid responses (75% response rate) from 115 SME owners/chief executive officers and 285 employees. The results demonstrate there were positive effects of both types of leadership style on organizational performance. Further, the significant mediating effect of organizational commitment in both relationships shows the importance of this variable for leader effectiveness among entrepreneurs in Iraqi Kurdistan, and foreign entrepreneurs engaging in new businesses in the region.


2019 ◽  
Vol 33 (3) ◽  
pp. 189-202 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ian O’Boyle ◽  
David Shilbury ◽  
Lesley Ferkins

The aim of this study is to explore leadership within nonprofit sport governance. As an outcome, the authors present a preliminary working model of leadership in nonprofit sport governance based on existing literature and our new empirical evidence. Leadership in nonprofit sport governance has received limited attention to date in scholarly discourse. The authors adopt a case study approach involving three organizations and 16 participant interviews from board members and Chief Executive Officers within the golf network in Australia to uncover key leadership issues in this domain. Interviews were analyzed using an interpretive process, and a thematic structure relating to leadership in the nonprofit sport governance context was developed. Leadership ambiguity, distribution of leadership, leadership skills and development, and leadership and volunteerism emerged as the key themes in the research. These themes, combined with existing literature, are integrated into a preliminary working model of leadership in nonprofit sport governance that helps to shape the issues and challenges embedded within this emerging area of inquiry. The authors offer a number of suggestions for future research to refine, test, critique, and elaborate on our proposed working model.


2021 ◽  
pp. 147612702110048
Author(s):  
J Daniel Zyung ◽  
Wei Shi

This study proposes that chief executive officers who have received over their tenure a greater sum of total compensation relative to the market’s going rate become overconfident. We posit that this happens because historically overpaid chief executive officers perceive greater self-worth to the firm whereby such self-serving attribution inflates their level of self-confidence. We also identify chief executive officer- and firm-level cues that can influence the relationship between chief executive officers’ historical relative pay and their overconfidence, suggesting that chief executive officers’ perceived self-worth is more pronounced when chief executive officers possess less power and when their firm’s performance has improved upon their historical aspirations. Using a sample of 1185 firms and their chief executive officers during the years 2000–2016, we find empirical support for our predictions. Findings from this study contribute to strategic leadership research by highlighting the important role of executives’ compensation in creating overconfidence.


2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
pp. eabe3404
Author(s):  
Christopher R. Berry ◽  
Anthony Fowler

Anecdotal evidence suggests that some leaders are more effective than others but observed differences in outcomes between leaders could be attributable to chance variation. To solve this inferential problem, we develop a quantitative test of leader effects that provides more reliable inferences than previous strategies, and we implement the test in the settings of politics, business, and sports. We find significant effects of political leaders, particularly in nondemocracies. We find little evidence that chief executive officers influence the performance of their firms. In addition, we find clear evidence that sports coaches matter for a wide range of outcomes in football, basketball, baseball, and hockey.


2016 ◽  
Vol 50 (5/6) ◽  
pp. 670-694 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kevin Voss ◽  
Mayoor Mohan

Purpose The purpose of the this paper is to correct a deficiency in the published literature by examining the share price performance of firms that own high-value brands in uptrending, downtrending and sideways markets. Design/methodology/approach The authors examined stock price performance for an index of firms that owned brands in the Interbrand list of the “Best Global Brands” from 2001 through 2009 using the Fama-French method. Findings The authors’ index outperformed the Standard & Poor’s 500 when the market was up or downtrending, but not when it moved sideways. Research limitations/implications The authors find that an index of firms that own the produced better returns than the Standard & Poor’s 500 market index. Owning highly valued brands may be a marketplace signal to the investing community regarding the firm’s management acumen. Practical implications Owning high-value brands seems to influence share price performance, a metric used to judge chief executive officers. Thus, brand investments align with the shareholders’ interest. The authors help alleviate the perception (Challagalla et al., 2014) that marketing managers make investments on an ad hoc basis. Originality/value For the first time, the authors evaluate the effect of owning one or more of the world’s most valuable brands on the market value of common stock using data from downtrending, uptrending and no-trend periods. This research is also among the first to introduce volatility into the Fama-French method and it is an important explanatory variable. This paper’s approach has interesting comparisons to other papers taking a similar analytical approach.


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