Do CEO Activists Make a Difference? Evidence from a Field Experiment

Chatterji, Aaron; Toffel, Michael W.

doi:10.2139/ssrn.2742209

Cited by 31 publications

(35 citation statements)

References 53 publications

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“…KLD rates firms across a range of governance‐ and socially‐oriented initiatives and is commonly used to capture a firm's stakeholder strategy based on its degree of engagement in such initiatives (Chin et al, ; David et al, ; Flammer & Kacperczyk, ). KLD is widely considered the best and most comprehensive data source available for measuring stakeholder actions (e.g., Barnett & Salomon, ; Garcia‐Castro & Francoeur, ; Petrenko et al, ; Tang et al, ) and is used by both the academic and investment communities, thus allowing our findings to be understood outside of academic circles (Chatterji & Toffel, ; Chin et al, ).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Serving differently: CEO regulatory focus and firm stakeholder strategy

Gamache

Neville

Bundy

et al. 2020

Strategic Management Journal

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Serving differently: CEO regulatory focus and firm stakeholder strategy

Gamache

Neville

Bundy

et al. 2020

Strategic Management Journal

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“…even through distal observation (Fanelli & Misangyi, 2006;Lord & Maher, 1991;Shamir, 1995), and peer CEOs and their characteristics are with little doubt highly observable: CEOs of major corporations tend to be prominent public figures who are frequently interviewed by journalists and covered by electronic media (Westphal & Deephouse, 2011). CEOs are also known to frequently voice their opinions on social issues (Chatterji & Toffel, 2016) and leave their imprints on organizational communication (Chatterjee & Hambrick, 2007;Fanelli et al, 2009).…”

Section: The Influence Of Ceo Charisma and Ceo Narcissism On Imitationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Follow the leader (or not): The influence of peer CEOs’ characteristics on interorganizational imitation

Gupta

Misangyi

2018

Strategic Management Journal

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Research Summary: We argue that because charisma and narcissism represent widely held prototypes of effective and ineffective forms of leadership, respectively, the likelihood that a focal firm will imitate the practices of its peer firms is affected by these peer firms’ CEO characteristics. We theorize that peer firm CEO charisma enhances the focal firm’s imitation of peer firms’ behaviors, while peer firm CEO narcissism diminishes it. We further posit that the uncertainty of the context affects these imitation processes: industry dynamism and prior experience in a given strategic domain, respectively, strengthens and dampens focal firms’ susceptibility to these peer CEOs’ attributes. We test and find support for these ideas using a longitudinal sample of Fortune 500 firms in two distinct domains, corporate strategy and corporate social responsibility. Managerial Summary: When companies are uncertain about the costs and benefits of strategic actions this may lead them to imitate the actions of peer companies. But given the uncertainty, the challenge for executives is: which companies to emulate and which to ignore? In a sample of Fortune 500 companies, we find that the charisma or narcissism of a peer company’s CEO positively or negatively influences, respectively, the degree to which the peer company’s strategic actions are imitated. We reason that this is because these particular CEO attributes are widely believed to drive leadership effectiveness or ineffectiveness, respectively. We also find that the effects of these CEO characteristics on imitation are stronger in dynamic industry environments and weaker for companies that already have experience with the given strategy.

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“…If Millennials agree with the social causes a business pursues, research indicates they will attribute to that business its stance on that cause 56 . More importantly, recent research has revealed that CSA not only can shape public opinion about an issue, but also that influence can be as effective as advocacy by politicians 57 .…”

Section: Evolving Public Valuesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…As a result, there is an incentive for CEO's and businesses to take controversial stands on social issues. The new workforce is expecting it, consumers will be more loyal, and CEO's seem to be successful in galvanizing public opinion on those issues 61 .…”

Section: Evolving Public Valuesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Starbucks for President: The Disappearing Line between Government and Business as Agents for Social Change

Chang

2017

Revista Empresa y Humanismo

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This paper will explore the rise of corporate social advocacy (CSA) among business, including the social and legal developments that make it ripe for this engagement to take place. The analysis will also explore the potential impact of CSA on social change and democracy in the United States, including exploration of the motives of businesses engaged in such advocacy and the connection between political and social positions with consumer behavior. Lastly, this paper will identify some of the dangers of corporate advocacy in terms of its impact on the government and businesses, as well as on the voice of the people. The study also identifies various factors that may indicate whether this is a trend or a fundamental change in how companies deal with changes valuesbased.Key Words: Corporate Social Advocacy, Public Values, Legal Landscapes, Government Accountability.Resumen: Este trabajo explora el aumento de la Corporate Social Advocacy (CSA) entre las empresas, incluyendo el desarrollo social y legal que hace que estén maduras para que ese compromiso se lleve a cabo. El artículo también analiza el impacto potencial de la CSA sobre el cambio social y la democracia en los Estados Unidos, al igual que explora los motivos de las empresas comprometidas en esa labor de promoción y la conexión de las posiciones políticas y sociales con el comportamiento del consumidor. Por último, este trabajo intenta identificar algunos de los peligros de la corporate advocacy en términos de su impacto, tanto en el gobierno y las empresas como en la voz de la gente, así como varios factores que pueden indicar si se trata de una tendencia o de un cambio fundamental en el modo en que las empresas afrontan cambios basados en valores.

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Do CEO Activists Make a Difference? Evidence from a Field Experiment

Cited by 31 publications

References 53 publications

Serving differently: CEO regulatory focus and firm stakeholder strategy

Serving differently: CEO regulatory focus and firm stakeholder strategy

Follow the leader (or not): The influence of peer CEOs’ characteristics on interorganizational imitation

Starbucks for President: The Disappearing Line between Government and Business as Agents for Social Change

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