The impact of training on firm outcomes: longitudinal evidence from Canada

2019 ◽  
Vol 41 (2) ◽  
pp. 117-131
Author(s):  
Stéphane Renaud ◽  
Lucie Morin
Keyword(s):  
Firm Performance ◽  
Positive Impact ◽  
Voluntary Turnover ◽  
Empirical Literature ◽  
Reverse Causality ◽  
Firm Level ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Firm Outcomes ◽  
The Impact

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of three training indicators, namely offer, participation and cost, on three firm outcomes, namely voluntary turnover, firm performance and profit. Design/methodology/approach The empirical analysis is carried out using firm-level data sourced from a Canadian national data set. In total, data from 5,237 for-profits firms with ten employees or more were analyzed longitudinally over eight years. Results were generated by XTREG fixed effect longitudinal analyses between the three variables of training, voluntary turnover, firm performance and profit. Findings Training offer, operationalized as the number of different formal training programs offered annually by an employer, significantly decreases voluntary turnover while it significantly increases performance and profit. Training participation, operationalized as the percentage of employees receiving training per year, has a significant positive impact on voluntary turnover. Training cost, operationalized as the annual cost of training per employee, has no impact on the three firm outcomes. Practical implications Among the various human resource practices a firm can use to strengthen its human capital, training can have a significant impact of its own. Investing in a diversified training offer brings value to a firm by decreasing employee voluntary turnover while increasing firm performance and profit. Originality/value This research contributes to the strategic impact of organizational training, demonstrating the impact of training on key organizational outcomes over time. Further, this paper contributes to the empirical literature by making a distinction between voluntary and involuntary turnover. Last, even though this study does not entirely addresses the problem of possible reverse causality, using longitudinal objective data, this study addresses several limits of past research at the macro-level of analysis.

scholarly journals Ownership feature and firm performance via corporate innovation performance

2018 ◽  
Vol 25 (2) ◽  
pp. 239-250 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dung Nguyen ◽  
Hoai Nguyen ◽  
Kien S. Nguyen
Keyword(s):  
Firm Performance ◽  
Positive Impact ◽  
Policy Implications ◽  
Ownership Concentration ◽  
Likelihood Method ◽  
Sales Growth ◽  
Reverse Causality ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Cmp Model

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the simultaneous relationship among ownership concentration, innovation and firm performance of the small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Vietnam during the 2011–2015. By employing a Conditional Mixed Process (CMP) model, the findings show that: there is no impact of ownership concentration on innovation, but it has a positive impact on sales growth; innovation positively affects firm performance; and there exists a positively reverse causality from sales growth to innovation. Design/methodology/approach In this study, the authors propose the adaption of CMP model (Roodman, 2011). The nature of the first stage dependent variable – Innovation – is a binary one while the dependent variable Performance is continuous. Therefore, a model that can adapt the binary nature of the dependent variable and perform the estimation of a system of equations such as CMP model is preferred. The CMP framework is substantially that of seemingly unrelated regression, but with application in a larger scope. This approach is based on a “simulated maximum likelihood method” suggested by Geweke–Hajivassiliou–Keane algorithm. Findings By applying CMP method, this study examines the simultaneous relationship among ownership concentration, innovation and firm performance of the SMEs in Vietnam from 2011 to 2015. The findings indicate that: there is no impact of ownership concentration on innovation, but it has a positive impact on sales growth; innovation positively affects firm performance; and there exists a positively reverse causality from sales growth to innovation. Research limitations/implications In spite of the efforts to explore the simultaneous relationship among ownership concentration, innovation and firm performance of the SMEs in Vietnam, the study still has some limitations which are promising further research directions. First, the SME surveys by Central Institute for Economic Management do not have much information about other types of ownership including state-owned and foreign ownership. Therefore, possible further studies with richer data sets may explore the impacts of different types of ownership on firm innovation and performance. Second, other types of innovation such as organizational innovation, marketing innovation can also be investigated in further studies in a richer data set for the case of Vietnam SMEs. Originality/value The findings show that: there is no impact of ownership concentration on innovation, but it has a positive impact on sales growth; innovation positively affects firm performance; and there exists a positively reverse causality from sales growth to innovation. The policy implications insist on facilitating SMEs with easier access to capital via loans with preferred interest or trust loans without collateral, training programs for the labor force and SME leaders, and reduction of unnecessary administrative procedure.

Corporate tax planning and corporate tax disclosure

2019 ◽  
Vol 28 (2) ◽  
pp. 327-364
Author(s):  
Mahfoudh Hussein Mgammal
Keyword(s):  
Positive Impact ◽  
Positive Influence ◽  
Tax Planning ◽  
Corporate Tax ◽  
Effective Tax Rate ◽  
Firm Level ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose This paper aims to examine the impact of corporate tax planning (TP) on tax disclosure (TD). Using tax expenses data set, with the detailed effective tax rate (ETR) by reconciling individual items of income and expenses. Design/methodology/approach A firm-level panel data set is used to analyse 286 non-financial listed companies on Bursa Malaysia that spans the period 2010-2012. Multivariate statistical analyses were run on the sample data. The empirical understanding of TD depends on public sources of data in the financial statement, characterized in the aggregated note of tax expenses. Fitting with Malaysian environment, the authors measured TD using modified ETR reconciling items. Findings Results show that TP, exhibit a robust positive influence on TD. This suggests that TP is related to lower corporate TD. In addition, companies with high TP attempt to mitigate the disclosure problem by increasing various TD. The authors further find significant positive impact between each of firm size and industry dummy, on TD. This means that company-specific characteristics are significant factors affecting corporate TD. Research limitations/implications This study contributes to the literature on the effect of TP on TD. It depends on both the signalling theory and the Scholes–Wolfson framework, which are the main theories concerned with TP and TD. Therefore, from a theoretical side, the authors add to the current theories by verifying that users are the party influenced whether positively or negatively, by the extent of TD or the extent of TP activities through Malaysian organizations. Practical implications The evidence found in this paper has important policy and practical implications for the authorities, researchers, decision makers and company managers. The findings can provide them some relevant insights on the importance of TP actions from companies’ perspective and contribute to the discussion of who verifies and deduces from TD directed by companies. Originality/value This paper originality is regarded as the first attempt to examine the impact of TP on TD in a developing country such as Malaysia. Malaysian setting is an interesting one to examine because Malaysia could be similar to other countries in Southeast Asia. Results contribute significant insights to the discussion about TD regarding, which parties are responsible for the verification of TD by firms, and which parties benefit from this disclosure. Findings suggest that companies face a trade-off between tax benefits and TD when selecting the type of their TP.

Corporate social responsibility and financial performance nexus

2018 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 301-328 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joseph Dery Nyeadi ◽  
Muazu Ibrahim ◽  
Yakubu Awudu Sare
Keyword(s):  
Firm Performance ◽  
Financial Performance ◽  
Positive Impact ◽  
Public Investment ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Public ◽  
Firm Financial Performance ◽  
Corporate Social ◽  
The Impact

Purpose The paper aims to investigate empirically the impact of corporate social responsibility (CSR) on financial performance in South African listed firms. Design/methodology/approach The paper uses panel corrected standard errors to estimate the effect of CSR on firm financial performance and thus addresses contemporaneous cross-correlations across the panel cross sections. The study uses a broad base measure of CSR created by the Public Investment Corporation data set and the combination of accounting and economic means of measuring firm financial performance. Findings CSR is found to have a strong positive impact on firm financial performance in South Africa. When CSR is decomposed further into its major components, governance performance positively impacts a firm’s financial performance with no evidence of any relationship between social components and firm performance and between environmental components and firm performance. The positive impact of CSR on firm performance is greater in big firms. At the industry level, CSR is noticed to impact positively on financial performance in the extractive industry via good governance and responsible environmental behaviors. It however has no impact on firm performance in the financial sector. Research limitations/implications The results should be interpreted with caution and some limitations. Due to the limiting nature of the Public Investment Corporation data set (the survey was carried out on selected firms on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange for three years spanning from 2011 to 2013). This resulted in a sample of 56 firms. It is therefore very problematic to generalize the findings to a larger population over a long period of time. This is more limiting especially on individual sector studies where the sample has further shrunk to a smaller sample. As a result of the smaller sample size, the authors were unable to explore some other sectors which could have given more revealing findings. The authors recommend that future research should explore other data sets or use primary data approach that can allow for more sample size and elongated time period for a more holistic view and for easy generalization of the findings. The authors also identify an important lacuna necessitating further research effort. It would be interesting to empirically examine the threshold point of firms’ size beyond which CSR damages firms’ performance. Knowledge of this will guide managers of firms in their strategic CSR decision. Practical implications This study does not only serve as a reference work for subsequent investigations into the impact of CSR on firm performance in sub-Saharan Africa but also serves as a guide to policymakers on the financial impact of CSR adoption. Originality/value This study is one of the pioneering works that comprehensively examines the effect of CSR on financial performance amongst South African firms via size and sector and also controls for contemporaneous cross-correlation effects from the firms in the panel set.

scholarly journals The governance role of shareholders and board of directors on firm performance: an eclectic governance-performance model

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ozgur Ozdemir ◽  
Erhan Kilincarslan
Keyword(s):  
Firm Performance ◽  
Agency Theory ◽  
Board Of Directors ◽  
Positive Impact ◽  
Ownership Concentration ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Resource Based View ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Impact

Purpose This study aims to examine the governance role of shareholders and board of directors in determining firm performance through an eclectic multi-theoretic model that integrates structure and incentive functions of agency theory and capability aspect of the resource-based view. Design/methodology/approach The research model uses a large panel data set of 2,364 UK firms over the period 2000–2010 and uses alternative specifications of the model to improve robustness. Findings The results show that the industry experience of major shareholders as a proxy for shareholder capability has a significant positive impact on investee firm performance. The findings also reveal that the lock-in effect of the largest shareholder has a positive impact on performance, whereas the monitoring effectiveness of shareholders is not associated with ownership concentration. Moreover, the results indicate the underlying capabilities of the board of directors and their impact on corporate performance – particularly, the interlocking directorates of executives have a positive impact on firm performance but those of non-executives have a negative one. However, the previous directorship experience of non-executives has a positive impact on performance. Research limitations/implications This study presents a more comprehensive and complete understanding of the governance-performance relationship beyond the narrow or partial explanations provided by single-theory-based studies or those of investigating the effect of various governance tools separately. Practical implications This study provides more insights into the capability dimension of shareholders and the role of incentives in motivating shareholders to exercise stronger oversight on the management rather than just using ownership concentration. Hence, the study can serve as valuable guidance for investors, corporate managers and policymakers. Originality/value To the best of the knowledge, this is the first comprehensive study that uses an eclectic philosophical approach, integrating the agency theory and resource-based view, to not only examine the impact of board of directors but also investigate the governance role of shareholders in modern corporations to understand how shareholders acquire the requisite skills and information, the best practices and processes, and ultimately use the scarce and inimitable resources that help investee firms in improving their performance.

CEO board membership: implications for firm value

2018 ◽  
Vol 30 (3) ◽  
pp. 352-370
Author(s):  
Michelle Li ◽  
Helen Roberts
Keyword(s):  
Firm Performance ◽  
Firm Value ◽  
Information Transfer ◽  
Positive Impact ◽  
Board Members ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Board Membership ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Relationship

Purpose This paper aims to examine the relation between CEO board membership and firm performance. Design/methodology/approach This paper investigates the relationship between firm performance and CEO board membership, applying two-stage least squares, propensity score matching and correcting for self-selection bias across a unique sample of publicly listed New Zealand firms that demonstrate a definitive variation in CEO board membership. Findings This study finds that CEO board membership has a positive impact on firm performance, and these benefits are greater for more complex firms. Research limitations/implications Firms with CEOs independent of the board are associated with lower firm performance. The results are consistent with CEO board members providing an important information transfer mechanism to the board, resulting in an increase in average firm performance. This benefit is greater for larger firms with more business segments. Originality/value The paper tests for the impact of CEO board membership using a data set that demonstrates a definitive variation in CEO board membership.

Capital and credit constraints in the engagement of youth in Ghanaian agriculture

2019 ◽  
Vol 80 (1) ◽  
pp. 22-37 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martinson Ankrah Twumasi ◽  
Yuansheng Jiang ◽  
Monica Owusu Acheampong
Keyword(s):  
Positive Impact ◽  
Credit Constraints ◽  
Rural Youth ◽  
Unique Contribution ◽  
Switching Regression ◽  
Credit Constraint ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Application Procedure ◽  
The Impact

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to determine the factors influencing rural youth farmers’ credit constraints status and the effect of credit constraint on the intensity of participation of these farmers in Ghana. Design/methodology/approach The econometric estimation is based on cross-sectional data collected in 2018 from the Brong Ahafo region in Ghana. The sample data set consists of 450 rural youth farmers. The collected data were analyzed through different econometric techniques, using the endogenous switching regression model (ERSM). Findings The direct elicitation approach employed in this study revealed that out of the 450 farmers, 211 (47 percent) of the respondents were credit constrained compared to 239 (53 percent) of their counterparts who were unconstrained. The ERSM indicated that youth farmers education, age, savings, parents occupation reduced the probability of the rural youth farmer to be credit constrained but cumbersome loan application procedure and loan disbursement time positively affect credit constraint. Moreover, farmers that are credit constrained have lower intensity of participation in agriculture activities than a random farmer from the sample. This suggests that access to credit has a positive impact on the intensity of participation in agriculture activities. Research limitations/implications In this study, only rural youth farmers in a particular region were considered. However, there are youths all over the nation. Therefore, future researchers could consider other youth’s farmers elsewhere in the country. Originality/value Although existing studies have examined rural youth farmers’ participation in agriculture and credit constraint separately, the unique contribution of this paper is the analysis of credit constraint of rural youth farmers as well as the impact of credit constraint on the intensity of participation in agriculture activities.

The role of national culture in the impact of board gender diversity on firm performance: evidence from a multi-country study

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Navaz Naghavi ◽  
Saeed Pahlevan Sharif ◽  
Hafezali Bin Iqbal Hussain
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Governance ◽  
Firm Performance ◽  
Generalized Method Of Moments ◽  
Gender Diversity ◽  
Governance Structure ◽  
Corporate Governance Structure ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Board Gender Diversity ◽  
The Impact

PurposeThis study seeks to add more insights to the debate on “whether”, “how”, and “under which condition” women representation on the board contributes to firm performance. More specifically, the current study aims to investigate if the effect of board gender diversity on firm performance is dependent on macro factors of national cultures.Design/methodology/approachThe authors used the generalized method of moments regression and a data set consists of 2,550 company year observations over 10 years.FindingsThe results indicated that cultural variables interact with board diversity to influence firm performance. Having women on the board in countries with high power distance, individualist, masculine and low-uncertainty avoidance culture influences the firm performance negatively.Originality/valueThe findings indicate that the effects of corporate governance structure on firm performance depends on culture-specific factors, providing support for the argument that institutional norms that are governed by cultural norms affect the effectiveness of corporate governance structure.

Revisiting the impact of organized labor on corporate bottom lines

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Dmytro Osiichuk ◽  
Paweł Mielcarz ◽  
Julia Kavalenka
Keyword(s):  
Financial Performance ◽  
Organized Labor ◽  
Corporate Financial Performance ◽  
Firm Level ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Content Type ◽  
International Panel ◽  
Transmission Mechanisms ◽  
Credible Threat ◽  
The Impact

Purpose Relying on an international panel data set, the purpose of this paper is to quantify the economic impact of labor unionization on corporate financial performance. Design/methodology/approach Static panel regression analysis is performed for a firm-level multinational data set to elucidate the postulated empirical relationships between employee unionization and corporate performance. The transmission mechanisms intermediating the studied effects are discussed and operationalized. Findings The empirical evidence demonstrates that firms with a higher level of employee unionization spend more on wages and labor-related expenses. The concomitant downside of higher resource extraction by unions is a lower rate of net employment creation and a higher possibility of redundancy layoffs. Originality/value Overall, the authors demonstrate that by creating a credible threat of employee disobedience manifested through strikes and internal wage disputes, labor unions remain an effective mechanism of increasing employees’ bargaining power. Despite the discovered weak negative associative link between the degree of unionization and corporate financial performance, the authors perceive the overall evidence to be inconclusive on this matter.

Where Women Make a Difference: Gender Quotas and Firms’ Performance in Three European Countries

ILR Review ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 73 (3) ◽  
pp. 768-793 ◽  
Author(s):  
Simona Comi ◽  
Mara Grasseni ◽  
Federica Origo ◽  
Laura Pagani
Keyword(s):  
Firm Performance ◽  
Positive Impact ◽  
Gender Quotas ◽  
Policy Debate ◽  
Corporate Board ◽  
Firm Level ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Accounting Data ◽  
Positive Effect ◽  
Identification Strategy

The authors study the effect of corporate board gender quotas on firm performance in France, Italy, and Spain. The identification strategy exploits the exogenous variation in mandated gender quotas within country and over time and uses a counterfactual methodology. Using firm-level accounting data and a difference-in-difference estimator, the authors find that gender quotas had either a negative or an insignificant effect on firm performance in the countries considered with the exception of Italy, where they find a positive impact on productivity. The authors then focus on Italy. Using a novel data set containing detailed information on board members’ characteristics, they offer possible explanations for the positive effect of gender quotas. The results provide an important contribution to the policy debate about the optimal design of legislation on corporate gender quotas.

scholarly journals Product diversification and large construction firm productivity: the effect of institutional environments in Malaysia

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohd Azrai Azman ◽  
Carol K.H. Hon ◽  
Bo Xia ◽  
Boon L. Lee ◽  
Martin Skitmore
Keyword(s):  
Firm Performance ◽  
Positive Impact ◽  
Product Diversification ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Construction Firms ◽  
Unrelated Diversification ◽  
Construction Firm ◽  
Related Diversification ◽  
Generalised Method Of Moments ◽  
The Impact

PurposeMany large construction firms (LCFs) adopt product diversification (PD) to counter downturns and spread risks. However, no detailed information is available concerning the type of PD that improves their performance. In addition, it is still uncertain how much changes in institutional dimensions influence the effectiveness of PD. Therefore, the aim is to resolve this issue by establishing a model that shows the extent of this influence.Design/methodology/approachThe generalised method of moments (GMM) estimator is used to model the PD strategies of 86 LCFs in Malaysia over 14 years (2003–2016) and its impact on productivity and profitability performance.FindingsUnrelated diversification (UD) decreased firm performance in 2003–2016, while related diversification (RD) had a positive impact during the more liberal 2010–2016 phase. The models show that the impact of PD is highly dependent on changes in institutional dimensions.Practical implicationsFirstly, managers may adjust the type of PD and its level of diversification to improve firm performance. Secondly, they may devise PD strategies based on changes in institutional dimensions to maximise their effectiveness.Originality/valueThe study contributes to the literature by determining the optimal amount of PD (including RD and UD) and its impact on performance. Secondly, the study is the first to investigate the moderating relationship of the institutional dimensions of economic and regulatory institutions on PD-firm performance. Thirdly, the study is the first to explore the components of technical-scale-scope economies (movement towards and around the production frontier), this being crucial to the strategy that was only conjectured in previous studies.

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