TY - JOUR
T1 - Unpacking Functional Experience Complementarities in Senior Leaders' Influences on CSR Strategy
T2 - A CEO-Top Management Team Approach
AU - Reimer, Marko
AU - Van Doorn, Sebastiaan
AU - Heyden, Mariano L. M.
PY - 2018/9
Y1 - 2018/9
N2 - In this study, we examine the influence of senior leadership on firms' corporate social responsibility (CSR). We integrate upper echelons research that has investigated either the influence of the CEO or the top management team (TMT) on CSR. We contend that functional experience complementarity between CEOs and TMTs in formulating and implementing CSR strategy may underlie differentiated strategies in CSR. We find that when CEOs who have predominant experience in output functions are complemented by TMTs with a lower proportion of members who have experience in output functions, there is a pronounced effect on the community, product, and diversity dimensions of CSR. In turn, when output-oriented CEOs are complemented by output-oriented TMTs, we observe an effect on the employee relations dimension of CSR. Interestingly, we find no influence of CEO-TMT complementarity on the environment dimension of CSR. In general, our empirical results support the relevance of the interaction between CEOs and their TMTs in defining their firms' CSR profile.
AB - In this study, we examine the influence of senior leadership on firms' corporate social responsibility (CSR). We integrate upper echelons research that has investigated either the influence of the CEO or the top management team (TMT) on CSR. We contend that functional experience complementarity between CEOs and TMTs in formulating and implementing CSR strategy may underlie differentiated strategies in CSR. We find that when CEOs who have predominant experience in output functions are complemented by TMTs with a lower proportion of members who have experience in output functions, there is a pronounced effect on the community, product, and diversity dimensions of CSR. In turn, when output-oriented CEOs are complemented by output-oriented TMTs, we observe an effect on the employee relations dimension of CSR. Interestingly, we find no influence of CEO-TMT complementarity on the environment dimension of CSR. In general, our empirical results support the relevance of the interaction between CEOs and their TMTs in defining their firms' CSR profile.
KW - CEOs
KW - Corporate social responsibility
KW - Functional background
KW - Senior leadership
KW - Top management teams
KW - Upper echelons theory
KW - CORPORATE SOCIAL-RESPONSIBILITY
KW - GENERALIZED ESTIMATING EQUATIONS
KW - LONGITUDINAL DATA-ANALYSIS
KW - HUMAN-RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
KW - CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICERS
KW - RESEARCH-AND-DEVELOPMENT
KW - SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT
KW - FIRM PERFORMANCE
KW - FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE
KW - COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85027526437&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1007/s10551-017-3657-5
DO - 10.1007/s10551-017-3657-5
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85027526437
SN - 0167-4544
VL - 151
SP - 977
EP - 995
JO - Journal of Business Ethics
JF - Journal of Business Ethics
IS - 4
ER -