Developing Sustainable Decision Performance for Science and Technology Industries in China

Abstract

This study considers the mediating role of top management teams' (TMTs) behavioral integration in exploring the relationship between the strategic decision-making process (SDMP; procedural rationality and constructive political behavior) and sustainable decision performance (decision quality and decision satisfaction). Survey data totaling 580 from the TMTs of the science and technology enterprises from first-tier cities in China were analyzed through structural equation modeling. The results indicate a positive influence of procedural rationality and constructive political behavior on sustainable decision quality and satisfaction. Behavioral integration appeared to mediate the nexus between the sustainable decision-making process and strategic decision performance. By categorizing the SDMP into two dimensions, a complete and explicit concept of the SDMP is reached, which permits practitioners to aim investments of a critical resource in realizing the full potential of decision performance in the sustainable decision performance.Sustainability 2020, 12, 2068 2 of 16 TMT behavioral integration encompasses the degree of close interaction, open information exchange, and joint collaborative decision-making of the top management team [4]. Thus, TMTs with high levels of behavioral integration exhibit a great deal of communication, exchange of information, and collaboration [10], which enhances decision-making performance [5,11,12]. Konradt et al. [13] believed that TMT features' diversity affects the results of strategic decision-making and product performance through reflexivity and knowledge sharing. De Wit et al. [14] found that TMT cognitive conflict is likely to lead to relationship conflict and bias in information processing; thus, negatively affecting the quality of strategic decisions.We draw from the above studies that findings on SDMP are influenced by country and organizational specific characteristics and goals for strategic decision-making. Regarding the connotation of the SDMP, Papulova and Gazova [15] shares a view that the SDMP is a "set of procedures" (decision preparation, alternative formulation, alternative evaluation, strategic selection, etc.). Thus, the researchers believe that the SDMP is a kind of "complex system" (trying to deepen the understanding of the SDMP by extending the analysis level and expanding the content contained in the strategic decision-making process from the perspective of the system). Rajagopalan et al. [16] uses the characteristics of the SDMPs (such as comprehensiveness, rationality, political behavior, participation, conflict) to define "substitution." While each "interpretation" attempts to outline the definition of "what are the SDMPs," the meaning of each perspective seems reasonable and one-sided, which to some extent, increases the ambiguity of the concept of the SDMPs and how it impacts sustainable decision performance. Moreover, the literature on the SDMP has mainly focused on the impact of TMT social psychological process, the role of situational variables [17],...

A study on top managers from a resource-based perspective

“…Papadakis et al (1998) found that evidence of a positive relationship between corporate performance and comprehensiveness/rationality. Similarly, others have argued that more rational decisions may themselves lead to better performance (Smith et al, 1988;Lin et al, 2019;Meng et al, 2020). Because top managers make strategic decisions through a rational process and gathering necessary information, we expect that this kind of decision-making process will result in higher-quality decisions, which result in better performance:…”

“…Furthermore, our results show that experienced TMTs tend to make strategic decisions more slowly, while transformational leaders tend to speed up decision-making. It is important to know that both the demographic and psychological characteristics of top managers may influence decision-making styles (Gu et al, 2016;Meng et al, 2020), which, in turn, may affect firm performance. These findings can be applied to strategic human resource management to build competitive advantages, including recruitment, selection and training.…”

Building Micro-Foundations for Digital Transformation: A Moderated Mediation Model of the Interplay between Digital Literacy and Digital Transformation

“…The TMT's behavioral dynamics provide a more complete perception of organizational performance than an individual executive's actions. Social interactions among team members have an impact on behavioral integration (BI), a joint effort [53,54]. Therefore, BI becomes embedded within the relational network, promoting collaboration within the TMT, known as top management team behavioral integration (TBI) [55][56][57][58][59][60].…”