ICEF/FES Research Seminar by Stephen Hansen (University of Oxford)
Speaker: Stephen Hansen (University of Oxford)
Theme: "CEO Behavior and Firm Performance"
Abstract: We measure the behavior of 1,114 CEOs in Brazil, France, Germany, India, UK and US using a new methodology that combines (i) diary data on every activity the CEOs undertake during one work week and (ii) a machine learning algorithm that projects these data onto scalar CEO behavior indices. The algorithm separates CEOs into two distinct behavioral types that we label “leaders” and “managers”. Leaders spend more time with C-suite executives in multi-party, multi-functions meetings, while managers spend more time with production and in one-on-one meetings. Firms with leader CEOs are on average more productive that those with manager CEOs. This difference does not reflect pre-appointment differences in productivity levels or trends; rather, firm productivity increases only after the CEO is appointed, and gradually over time. The estimation of a simple assignment model with frictions shows that the data are consistent with horizontal differentiation in CEO behavior, and a relative scarcity of leaders. We estimate that 17% of CEOs in our sample are mismatched, and that this misallocation of CEOs to firms can account for approximately 13% of the differences in labor productivity between high and low/medium income countries.