IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/jobuve/v20y2023ics2352673423000537.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

CEO's industry experience and emerging market SME performance: The effects of corruption and political uncertainty

Author

Listed:
  • Morales-Solis, Juan Carlos
  • Barker III, Vincent L.
  • Cordero, Arkangel M.

Abstract

We examine how Chief Executive Officer (CEO) industry-specific experience influences firm performance in small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in emerging markets. Drawing on the upper echelons perspective and learning theory, we propose an inverted U-shaped relationship between an SME CEO's industry-specific experience and firm performance. We also argue that country corruption and political instability moderate this relationship, resulting in lower performance for SME CEOs with little industry experience or many years of industry experience in countries with high corruption or political instability. We test our hypotheses using data from the World Bank's Enterprise Survey of firms in emerging economies from 2006 to 2019. The results support our hypotheses that corruption and political instability primarily hurt the performance of SMEs with CEOs having very long industry experience. We discuss implications of this research for scholars studying SMEs in lesser-developed institutional environments and how leaders may influence SME performance.

Suggested Citation

  • Morales-Solis, Juan Carlos & Barker III, Vincent L. & Cordero, Arkangel M., 2023. "CEO's industry experience and emerging market SME performance: The effects of corruption and political uncertainty," Journal of Business Venturing Insights, Elsevier, vol. 20(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jobuve:v:20:y:2023:i:c:s2352673423000537
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jbvi.2023.e00424
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2352673423000537
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.jbvi.2023.e00424?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Sharon A. Alvarez & Jay B. Barney & Philip Anderson, 2013. "Forming and Exploiting Opportunities: The Implications of Discovery and Creation Processes for Entrepreneurial and Organizational Research," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 24(1), pages 301-317, February.
    2. Vincent L. Barker , III & George C. Mueller, 2002. "CEO Characteristics and Firm R&D Spending," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 48(6), pages 782-801, June.
    3. Nabamita Dutta & Russell Sobel, 2016. "Does corruption ever help entrepreneurship?," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 47(1), pages 179-199, June.
    4. Anokhin, Sergey & Schulze, William S., 2009. "Entrepreneurship, innovation, and corruption," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 24(5), pages 465-476, September.
    5. Cláudia Custódio & Miguel A. Ferreira & Pedro Matos, 2019. "Do General Managerial Skills Spur Innovation?," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 65(2), pages 459-476, February.
    6. Arend, Richard J., 2022. "How uncertainty levels and types matter, to likely entrepreneurs and others," Journal of Business Venturing Insights, Elsevier, vol. 18(C).
    7. Ko, Eun-Jeong & McKelvie, Alexander, 2018. "Signaling for more money: The roles of founders' human capital and investor prominence in resource acquisition across different stages of firm development," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 33(4), pages 438-454.
    8. Alvarez, Sharon A. & Young, Susan L. & Woolley, Jennifer L., 2015. "Opportunities and institutions: A co-creation story of the king crab industry," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 30(1), pages 95-112.
    9. Pol Herrmann & Deepak K. Datta, 2006. "CEO Experiences: Effects on the Choice of FDI Entry Mode," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 43(4), pages 755-778, June.
    10. Xuemei Xie & Guoyou Qi & Kevin Xiaoguo Zhu, 2019. "Corruption and New Product Innovation: Examining Firms’ Ethical Dilemmas in Transition Economies," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 160(1), pages 107-125, November.
    11. Delmar, Frederic & Shane, Scott, 2004. "Legitimating first: organizing activities and the survival of new ventures," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 19(3), pages 385-410, May.
    12. Joseph F. Porac & Howard Thomas & Charles Baden‐Fuller, 1989. "Competitive Groups As Cognitive Communities: The Case Of Scottish Knitwear Manufacturers," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 26(4), pages 397-416, July.
    13. Valentina A. Assenova & Olav Sorenson, 2017. "Legitimacy and the Benefits of Firm Formalization," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 28(5), pages 804-818, October.
    14. Arturs Kalnins, 2018. "Multicollinearity: How common factors cause Type 1 errors in multivariate regression," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 39(8), pages 2362-2385, August.
    15. Athanasouli, Daphne & Goujard, Antoine, 2015. "Corruption and management practices: Firm level evidence," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 43(4), pages 1014-1034.
    16. Jan Hanousek & Anastasiya Shamshur & Jan Svejnar & Jiri Tresl, 2021. "Corruption level and uncertainty, FDI and domestic investment," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 52(9), pages 1750-1774, December.
    17. Huong Vu & Tuyen Quang Tran & Tuan Nguyen & Steven Lim, 2018. "Corruption, Types of Corruption and Firm Financial Performance: New Evidence from a Transitional Economy," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 148(4), pages 847-858, April.
    18. Dimitrios Georgakakis & Winfried Ruigrok, 2017. "CEO Succession Origin and Firm Performance: A Multilevel Study," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 54(1), pages 58-87, January.
    19. Sydney Finkelstein & Jerayr Haleblian, 2002. "Understanding Acquisition Performance: The Role of Transfer Effects," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 13(1), pages 36-47, February.
    20. Guoli Chen & Donald C. Hambrick, 2012. "CEO Replacement in Turnaround Situations: Executive (Mis)Fit and Its Performance Implications," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 23(1), pages 225-243, February.
    21. Ullah, Barkat, 2020. "Financial constraints, corruption, and SME growth in transition economies," The Quarterly Review of Economics and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 75(C), pages 120-132.
    22. Mohammad, Shoeb & Husted, Bryan W., 2021. "Innovation, new ventures, and corruption: Evidence from India," Journal of Business Venturing Insights, Elsevier, vol. 16(C).
    23. Danny Miller & Jean-Marie Toulouse, 1986. "Chief Executive Personality and Corporate Strategy and Structure in Small Firms," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 32(11), pages 1389-1409, November.
    24. Akie Iriyama & Rajiv Kishore & Debabrata Talukdar, 2016. "Playing dirty or building capability? Corruption and HR training as competitive actions to threats from informal and foreign firm rivals," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 37(10), pages 2152-2173, October.
    25. Yasemin Y. Kor & Vilmos F. Misangyi, 2008. "Outside directors' industry‐specific experience and firms' liability of newness," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 29(12), pages 1345-1355, December.
    26. Cláudia Custódio & Daniel Metzger, 2013. "How Do CEOs Matter? The Effect of Industry Expertise on Acquisition Returns," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 26(8), pages 2008-2047.
    27. Elizabeth E. Bailey & Constance E. Helfat, 2003. "External management succession, human capital, and firm performance: an integrative analysis," Managerial and Decision Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 24(4), pages 347-369.
    28. Mohamadi, Ashkan & Peltonen, Juhana & Wincent, Joakim, 2017. "Government efficiency and corruption: A country-level study with implications for entrepreneurship," Journal of Business Venturing Insights, Elsevier, vol. 8(C), pages 50-55.
    29. Rhonda K. Reger & Timothy B. Palmer, 1996. "Managerial Categorization of Competitors: Using Old Maps to Navigate New Environments," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 7(1), pages 22-39, February.
    30. Qi, Guoyou & Zou, Hailiang & Xie, Xuemei & Meng, Xiaohua & Fan, Tijun & Cao, Yuanhe, 2020. "Obedience or escape: Examining the contingency influences of corruption on firm exports," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 106(C), pages 261-272.
    31. Yasemin Y. Kor, 2003. "Experience-Based Top Management Team Competence and Sustained Growth," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 14(6), pages 707-719, December.
    32. Cassar, Gavin, 2014. "Industry and startup experience on entrepreneur forecast performance in new firms," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 29(1), pages 137-151.
    33. Farzana Chowdhury & David B. Audretsch & Maksim Belitski, 2019. "Institutions and Entrepreneurship Quality," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 43(1), pages 51-81, January.
    34. Tajaddini, Reza & Gholipour, Hassan F., 2021. "Economic uncertainty and business formation: A cross-country analysis," Journal of Business Venturing Insights, Elsevier, vol. 16(C).
    35. Toft-Kehler, Rasmus & Wennberg, Karl & Kim, Phillip H., 2014. "Practice makes perfect: Entrepreneurial-experience curves and venture performance," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 29(4), pages 453-470.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Guoli Chen & Sterling Huang & Philipp Meyer‐Doyle & Denisa Mindruta, 2021. "Generalist versus specialist CEOs and acquisitions: Two‐sided matching and the impact of CEO characteristics on firm outcomes," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 42(6), pages 1184-1214, June.
    2. Pragati Priya & Chandan Sharma, 2023. "Do financial constraints and corruption limit firms' innovation capability? Evidence from developing economies," Managerial and Decision Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 44(4), pages 1935-1961, June.
    3. Xuemei Xie & Guoyou Qi & Kevin Xiaoguo Zhu, 2019. "Corruption and New Product Innovation: Examining Firms’ Ethical Dilemmas in Transition Economies," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 160(1), pages 107-125, November.
    4. Zhou, Kevin Zheng & Wang, Kui & Xu, Dean & Xie, En, 2022. "Drinking poison to quench thirst: Does bribery foster firm performance in China?," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 147(C), pages 505-517.
    5. Xie, Xuemei & Liu, Xiaojie & Chen, Jialing, 2023. "A meta-analysis of the relationship between collaborative innovation and innovation performance: The role of formal and informal institutions," Technovation, Elsevier, vol. 124(C).
    6. Dwibedy, Punyashlok, 2022. "Informal competition and product innovation decisions of new ventures and incumbents across developing and transitioning countries," Journal of Business Venturing Insights, Elsevier, vol. 17(C).
    7. Hui Zheng & Xuexu Piao & Sangmoon Park, 2021. "The Role of Founder-CEO, Human Capital and Legitimacy in Venture Capital Financing in China’s P2P Lending Industry," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(4), pages 1-14, February.
    8. Emanuel Wittberg & Gissur Ó. Erlingsson & Karl Wennberg, 2024. "Does local government corruption inhibit entrepreneurship?," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 62(2), pages 775-806, February.
    9. Bendig, David, 2022. "Chief operating officer characteristics and how they relate to exploration via patenting versus venturing," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 140(C), pages 297-309.
    10. Nuscheler, Daniela & Engelen, Andreas & Zahra, Shaker A., 2019. "The role of top management teams in transforming technology-based new ventures' product introductions into growth," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 34(1), pages 122-140.
    11. Haddoud, Mohamed Yacine & Nowinski, Witold & Onjewu, Adah-Kole Emmanuel & Souleh, Samah & Elbaz, Ahmed Mohamed, 2024. "Perceived Corruption, entrepreneurial exposure and entrepreneurial career Intention: Evidence from five emerging countries," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 174(C).
    12. Mohammad, Shoeb & Yang, Jie & Butt, Irfan, 2024. "Does corruption have a sanding or greasing impact on innovation? Reconciling the contrasting perspectives through a systematic literature review," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 53(7).
    13. Yung, Kenneth & Cai, Qiuye & Li, Deqing Diane, 2023. "Greasing the wheels of irreversible investment: International evidence on the economic effects of corruption," Global Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 58(C).
    14. Qi, Guoyou & Zou, Hailiang & Xie, Xuemei & Meng, Xiaohua & Fan, Tijun & Cao, Yuanhe, 2020. "Obedience or escape: Examining the contingency influences of corruption on firm exports," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 106(C), pages 261-272.
    15. Gonzalo Molina-Sieiro & Katia M. Galdino & R. Michael Holmes, 2023. "Ownership types, institutions, and the internationalization of emerging economy new ventures: evidence from Africa," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 60(3), pages 1121-1145, March.
    16. Chen, Hsiang-Lan & Hsu, Wen-Tsung & Chang, Chiao-Yi, 2016. "Independent directors’ human and social capital, firm internationalization and performance implications: An integrated agency-resource dependence view," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 25(4), pages 859-871.
    17. Nam Pham Xuan & Thanh Ha Le, 2023. "Bribery and firm survival in Vietnam: Moderating effects of market competition, credit, and institutional constraints," Review of Development Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 27(2), pages 1242-1269, May.
    18. Li, Yafei & Mbanyele, William & Sun, Jinping, 2022. "Managerial R&D hands-on experience, state ownership, and corporate innovation," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 72(C).
    19. Mohammad, Shoeb & Husted, Bryan W., 2021. "Innovation, new ventures, and corruption: Evidence from India," Journal of Business Venturing Insights, Elsevier, vol. 16(C).
    20. Nicolae Stef, 2021. "Institutions and corporate financial distress in Central and Eastern Europe," European Journal of Law and Economics, Springer, vol. 52(1), pages 57-87, August.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:jobuve:v:20:y:2023:i:c:s2352673423000537. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.journals.elsevier.com/journal-of-business-venturing-insights .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.