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Promotion Tournaments and Capital Rationing

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  • Bing Han
  • David Hirshleifer
  • John C. Persons

Abstract

We analyze capital allocation in a conglomerate where divisional managers with uncertain abilities compete for promotion to CEO. A manager can sometimes gain by unobservably adding variance to divisional performance. Capital rationing can limit this distortion, increase productive efficiency, and allow the owner to make more accurate promotion decisions. Firms for which CEO talent is more important for firm performance are more likely to ration capital. A rationed manager is more likely to be promoted even though all managers are identical ex ante. When the tournament payoff is relatively small, offering an incentive wage can be more efficient than rationing capital; however, when tournament incentives are paramount, rationing is more efficient. The Author 2008. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The Society for Financial Studies. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oxfordjournals.org, Oxford University Press.

Suggested Citation

  • Bing Han & David Hirshleifer & John C. Persons, 2009. "Promotion Tournaments and Capital Rationing," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 22(1), pages 219-255, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:oup:rfinst:v:22:y:2009:i:1:p:219-255
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    3. Whitehead, Jake & Franklin, Joel P. & Washington, Simon, 2014. "The impact of a congestion pricing exemption on the demand for new energy efficient vehicles in Stockholm," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 70(C), pages 24-40.

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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • G39 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Other
    • G31 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Capital Budgeting; Fixed Investment and Inventory Studies
    • G30 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - General

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