July | 2018 | Anna Grosman

In June 2018, I visited Higher School of Economics in St Petersburg, Russia. As part of this research collaboration, Dr Aleksandrova and myself presented our joint paper with Prof Mickiewicz and Prof. Liu on “The Effects of CEO Turnover under Conditions of Complexity” during a research seminar organized on June, 13th, 2018. Further details can be found this press release.

Anna Grosman (Loughborough University)
Tomasz Mickiewicz (Aston University)
Xiaohui Liu (University of Birmingham),
Ekaterina Aleksandrova (Higher School of Economics)

Abstract. We investigate why sometimes the new CEO brings a positive effect to the firm, and sometimes the short-term effect is negative. We posit that while both effects are present simultaneously, which one will dominate is contingent on complexity. We see the latter as an overarching heuristic concept that helps us to reconcile the phenomena that have not been integrated into one theory before. We argue that CEO turnover is unlikely to be positive in the short run and under conditions of complexity, precisely organizational complexity (related to larger firms or part of business groups), relational complexity (associated with firms with state or foreign ownership), or environmental complexity (for firms in high-tech industries or engaging in international trading). We stress bounded rationality and cognitive limitations.

On September 21, 2018, Loughborough University London will host the extension of Strategic Management Society Conference on State Capitalism, funded by the Society for Advancement of Management Studies.

The theme of this extension is linked to the theme of the main conference, Strategies in the Era of De-Globalization. The rapid expansion of state-owned firms from emerging economies has been perceived as a potential threat by incumbents in advanced economies. Populist politicians have presented state-owned firms as rapacious acquirers that need to be stopped. The corruption scandals associated with the relationships between the state and state-owned firms also contributed to the perceived risks associated with the expansion of state-affiliated companies. As a result, state-affiliated companies that became important players in the globalization process also emerged as the central targets for the protectionists’ initiatives.

During this extension, we will be holding a paper development workshop session. If you are working on a paper about state capitalism and would like to receive feedback on your paper during this workshop, please email your proposal by August 1, 2018 to the extension organizers Anna Grosman (a.grosman@lboro.ac.uk), Ilya Okhmatovskiy (i.okhmatovskiy@novasbe.pt) and Mike Wright (mike.wright@imperial.ac.uk). Your proposal should follow the SMS proposal format. After reviewing the proposals, we will get back to all authors by August 15, 2018 and invite the authors of accepted proposals to submit full papers by September 1, 2018. This PDW is especially relevant for scholars who are interested in submitting their manuscripts to the Special Issue of Journal of World Business on “State Capitalism in International Context.”