The first essay shows that academic directors significantly increase firms' innovation. Following an academic director's death and relative to a non-academic director's death, the average firm reduces the number of citation-weighted patent applications by 30.7%. The number of patent applications also increases when an academic director becomes less busy after another company she holds directorship is acquired. Consistent with an advising channel, academic directors in STEM disciplines are particularly pro-innovation. In line with monitoring channels, firms with academic directors tend to dismiss CEOs who do not innovate and restrict real earnings management that waste financial resources. The relation between academic directors and innovation is not driven by PhD CEOs or non-academic PhD directors. Academic directors are associated with higher firm value at firms where innovation is more important but not at other firms. Overall, our results highlight the vital advising and monitoring roles academic directors play in corporate innovation. The second essay finds that pre-existing professional ties with a firm's board significantly increase a CEO candidate's probability of being hired by the firm. Considering all CEOs hired this year as potential candidates, a board-connection corresponds to a 152% increase in the probability the candidate is selected as CEO. Consistent with the hypothesis that boards select connected candidates to increase shareholder value, we find significantly greater firm performance improvement after CEO turnovers for firms hiring connected CEOs than those hiring unconnected CEOs. Further, the performance increases are significant only among firms with severe information asymmetry, large CEO termination risk, and high coordination costs. We also find that connected CEOs make better acquisitions than unconnected CEOs. These results suggest connected hiring increases firm performance because it reduces information asymmetry, CEO termination risk, and CEO-board coordination costs. Inconsistent with boards rendering favors to friends, connected CEOs are not awarded a larger pay package when they assume office. Overall, our results suggest that it pays for a firm to hire a CEO with pre-existing ties to the board. / Doctor of Philosophy / We see professors seating on corporate boards all the time. Why do firms hire them? Do they make firms innovate more because they have strong research orientation? The first essay finds that these directors enhance corporate innovation. They improve innovation with their STEM expertise. Because STEM disciplines are particularly relevant to production technology, they are able to advise the CEO about innovation. We also find that these directors make firms innovate more by linking CEO termination decisions to innovation and by preventing companies from wasting resources that could otherwise be used for innovation. Lastly, these directors improve firm value at firms where innovation is important. The board makes CEO recruiting decisions. We are interested in knowing (1) whether candidates are more likely to be hired if they already had a connection with the board; (2) whether these candidates outperform candidates without any connections. The second essay finds that having an acquaintance on the board helps a CEO candidate land the CEO position. We also find that these CEOs outperform CEOs without any connections. This is because there is little information gap between the connected CEO and the board. Also, the pre-existing connections allow the two parties to have better coordination.

Yes / This study examines the relationship between corporate governance compliance and firm performance in the UK. We develop a Governance Index and investigate its impact on corporate performance after controlling for potential endogeneity through the use of a more robust methodology, Generalized Method of Moments (GMM) Estimation. Our evidence is based on a sample of 435 non-financial publicly listed firms over the period 1999–2009. In contrast to earlier findings in the UK literature, our results suggest that compliance with corporate governance regulations is not a determinant of corporate performance in the UK. We argue that results from prior studies showing a positive impact of corporate governance on firms’ performance may be biased as they fail to control for potential endogeneity. There may be a possibility of reverse causality in the results of prior studies due to which changes in the internal characteristics of firms may be responsible for the corporate governance compliance and performance relationship. Our findings are based on GMM, which controls for the effects of unobservable heterogeneity, simultaneity and dynamic endogeneity and thus present more robust conclusions as compared to the findings of previously published studies in this area.

Yes / Purpose The research study aims to investigate green supply chain management (GSCM) elements as part of a complete system. It aims to understand the special properties of the GSCM system under the moderating effects of product complexity and purchasing structure. Design/methodology/approach A thorough literature review led to the building of the conceptual framework. Six constructs were identified using systems theory. These constructs include green supply chain technological dimensions (particularly, Artificial Intelligence (AI) based), green supply chain strategy, green supply chain process, product complexity, purchasing structure, and firm performance. The instrument was scientifically developed for gathering survey responses using complete design test methods. The conceptual model was eventually tested based on survey data collected from 250 automotive components and allied manufacturers in the emerging economy of South Africa. Findings The results indicate that GSCM technological dimensions (AI-based) positively influence GSCM strategy. Further, GSCM strategy was found to positively influence the GSCM process. The GSCM processes have significant effects on environmental performance, social performance, and financial performance. The product complexity has a significant moderation effect on the paths GSCM strategy and GSCM process. Originality/value The findings from multivariate data analysis provide a better understanding of GSCM system dynamics and are helpful to key decision-makers. This unique model has elevated GSCM theory to a new level. There are limited studies available in the existing GSCM literature using systems theory. This study will offer an advanced/comprehensive understanding to readers in this relatively new concept.

Yes / This study examines the effect of big data powered artificial intelligence on customer knowledge creation, user knowledge creation and external market knowledge creation to better understand its impact on B2B marketing rational decision making to influence firm performance. The theoretical model is grounded in Knowledge Management Theory (KMT) and the primary data was collected from B2B companies functioning in the South African mining industry. Findings point out that big data powered artificial intelligence and the path customer knowledge creation is significant. Secondly, big data powered artificial intelligence and the path user knowledge creation is significant. Thirdly, big data powered artificial intelligence and the path external market knowledge creation is significant. It was observed that customer knowledge creation, user knowledge creation and external market knowledge creation have significant effect on the B2B marketing-rational decision making. Finally, the path B2B marketing rational decision making has a significant effect on firm performance.

This master thesis is focused on an analysis of the impact of corporate board diversity on firm performance using evidence from the Czech Republic. Return on assets, EBIT margin, EBITDA margin, and net profit margin were used as the performance measures. Three types of board diversity were examined in this thesis - gender, nationality, and age. Gender and nationality diversity were both represented by the percentage of women or foreigners on board, and by a dummy variable indicating the presence of women or a foreigner on board. The age diversity was measured by the average age of all board members. Some additional control variables were included in the models such as firm age, firm size, liquidity, etc. Our research is using data from 114 Czech enterprises between the years 2010 and 2018. The fixed-effects or the random-effects method was used to determine the relationship between board diversity and firm performance. The results show that there is a significant and positive relationship between the presence of women on board and firm performance. The average age of board members has a significant negative effect on all dependent variables. Nationality diversity has a mixed effect on firm performance. JEL Classification D22, G32, G34, J15, J16 Keywords Board diversity, firm performance,...

The intense competition arising from globalisation requires MNCs to manage their HRs globally and strategically to become a source of competitive advantage. Hence, SIHRM acknowledges the need to balance global integration and local responsiveness, together with emphasising the importance of seeking strategic fit between HR policies and business strategy, which in turn leads to superior firm performance. Furthermore, this development also increased awareness and recognition of the role of senior managers and cultural traditions. Therefore, the primary purpose of this research was to explore the relationship between SIHRM effectiveness and firm performance as perceived by senior management coupled with the influence from MNCs' headquarters and Chinese cultural values. Consequently, the researcher selected a case study approach with a triangulation data collection method through questionnaires and semi-structured interviews undertaken in four selected subsidiaries of MNCs. The research findings strengthened the theoretical foundations of several HRM models, together with supporting Analoui's eight-parameter approach (1999) as a functional, coherent and interlinked framework regarding the effectiveness of senior managers. In particular, this research found that quality enhancement of products and service was the preferred and adopted key business strategy amongst the studied MNCs. Whilst they are also seeking to balance globalisation and localisation through reconciling control and adaptation rather than satisfying one at the expense of the other, such that the trend is for Western HR policies to be gradually accepted and internalised by the younger generation of the Chinese managers. Finally, this research made several recommendations to foreign MNCs operating in China.

This thesis examines the relationship between institutional context and firm performance, from both a theoretical and empirical perspective. The aim is to engage with the debate seeking to explain the observed diversity in the forms of economic organisation prevailing in socio-economic systems. The focus of the empirical work is on investigating the effects of the structure and behaviour of banking institutions on firm performance, in the Italian context. The analysis is comparative in the sense that confronts cooperative and capitalist business structures. The analytical framework is institutionalist in emphasising the institutionally embedded nature of economic performance, and the historical and cultural dimensions of economic behaviour. The institutional complementarity approach is used to investigate the hypothesis that the relative performance of different firm structures is context dependent. The main conclusions are that the economic performance of cooperative firms is strongly conditioned in a sense of institutional complementarity by the degree of development and competition characterising the financial domain. Rejected are the pessimistic predictions of conventional accounts that democratic firms are unequivocally unviable. Instead, there are relations of context dependency, of institutional complementarity that influence the viability of firm types. The overall conclusion is that the dynamics governing the evolution of socio-economic systems are much more complex than mainstream economics suggests; productive organisations may assume a multiplicity of forms. The theoretical claims of a universalistic history in which all production systems must follow the same line of development must be abandoned. This brings about major policy implications at the regional, national and international levels.

This study is motivated by one of the most prevalent properties of modern corporations: separation of ownership and control. Ownership concentration has been one of the corporate governance mechanisms to solve the agency problem between shareholders and management. Existing literature is mainly concerned with the impact of managerial ownership on firm performance. Little evidence is provided on the impact of general ownership concentration, including multiple large shareholders, on firm performance. This study aims to examine the efficiency of ownership concentration as a corporate governance mechanism, and to explore relevant policy implications to improve firm performance. Based on the company ownership data across a sample of 1291 European companies in the year of 2004, this study shows that European companies' ownership are highly concentrated with the largest three shareholders own more than 60% ownership of company. Industrial companies hold direct controls of European non-subsidiary companies, while private shareholders turn out to be the ultimate owners. On average, there is more than one large shareholder who owns more than 10% of the shares in a European company. A further sample of 655 European companies is used to investigate the relationship between ownership, control and firm performance. A significant non-linear impact of ownership concentration on firm performance with multiple turning points is confirmed. Specifically, Tobin's Q is highest when the Herfindahl index, which incorporates the degree of dispersion of shareholdings other than the largest one, reaches a value of 0.08. The largest shareholding of 10% might also be able to deliver relatively strong performance. Restructuring owner identities could be another efficient governance approach. Direct control from founder owners, ultimate control from insurance companies, and management ownership are beneficial for firm performance, while government, financial institutions except insurance companies and ultimate control of non-financial corporate owners are found to be detrimental for firm performance. Firm performance can also be improved by strengthening the contestability of the controlling coalition's power. The impacts of ownership and control on firm performance are found conditioned by country and industry. Therefore policies should be adjusted according to the companies' institutional environments. Although the endogeneity of ownership concentration and current firm performance is rejected in this study, past firm performance seems to affect current ownership concentration level. Higher accounting rates of return four years ago could result in lower current ownership concentration, while higher last year's Tobin's Q could result in higher current ownership concentration. Capital structure is found to be a significant substitute mechanism for ownership. These elements should be taken into account when the ownership governance mechanism is implemented.

This thesis comprises four chapters, in two parts. The first part examines the result of a Swedish payroll tax reduction; first from the perspective of the worker, then from that of the employer. The second half of the thesis concerns subjective well-being, both from an individual and from an aggregate viewpoint. Payroll Taxes and Youth Labor Demand. In 2007, the Swedish payroll tax was reduced substantially for young workers. This paper examines whether targeted payroll tax reductions are effective in raising youth employment. We estimate a small impact, both on employment and on wages. However, the effect differs markedly across ages, with 4–5 times higher impact on 22–23 year-olds compared to 25-year-olds. Additionally, the employment effects are strongly procyclical, approaching zero in the deep recession. We calculate that the estimated cost per created job is more than four times that of directly hiring workers at the average wage. Payroll Taxes and Firm Performance. The Swedish payroll tax reform of 2007 had the effect that firms' average social fees came to depend on the age structure of their employees. This makes it possible to estimate how firms respond to shocks in labor costs. We find a significant, but very small effect on gross investments, and a negative, but not statistically significant, impact on labor productivity. There are no effects on exit rates or profitability. Beyond Income: The Importance for Life Satisfaction of Having Access to a Cash Margin. We study how life satisfaction among adult Swedes is influenced by having access to a cash margin, i.e. a moderate amount of money that could be acquired on short notice either through own savings, by loan from family or friends, or by other means. We find that cash margin is a strong and robust predictor of life satisfaction, also when controlling for individual fixed-effects and socio-economic conditions, including income. This suggests that cash margin captures something beyond wealth. On Aggregating Subjective Well-Being. This paper discusses the assumptions underlying the aggregation of individually measured well-being. Any aggregation method is associated with measurability assumptions regarding the underlying well-being measure, as well as moral philosophical assumptions with respect to how individual well-being is weighted into a composite metric. I compare welfare across a set of countries, under alternative aggregation methods, and find that countries often can be ranked under comparatively weak measurement assumptions, and, equally important, that aggregation methods can be chosen so as to refrain from strong ethical preconceptions.

The present research examines the role of social ties and team-member exchange quality (TMX) in enabling small business owners involved in formal networking groups to gain access to new business. I report on data from two studies. First, initial data from a pilot study of 23 small business owners in networking groups revealed that more numerous social ties and more positive perceptions of team-member exchange quality (TMX) predicted performance outcomes. Specifically, individuals who had more numerous social ties within a networking group, and who reported higher TMX perceptions of their group, received significantly more referrals to potential clients compared to individuals who had numerous social ties but lower perceptions of TMX. Second, using a sample of 336 small business owners across 24 networking groups I built on these initial results, and incorporated an expanded theoretical framework, to explore how and when social ties and TMX influence the effectiveness of small business owners in networking groups. Specifically, I draw on the literatures related to social network theory, team-member exchange quality and affective organizational commitment to guide my exploration of the effectiveness of small business owners in networking groups. Data support the conclusion that both social ties and team-member exchange are important factors predicting the performance outcomes of small business owners in networking groups. Further, the data illustrate the mediating role of affective organizational commitment between the relation of social ties and team-member exchange on performance outcomes. I discuss implications and describe areas for future research based on these findings.