Top Management Team Size: An Exploration of Characteristics and Determinants
Type
working paper
Date Issued
2020-07-21
Author(s)
Radek, Elisabeth
Abstract
This article uses an exploratory approach to examine the various characteristics of top management teams (TMTs) of different sizes and what drives TMT size. Although TMTs have been expanding over the past 30 years, we still know relatively little about the drivers. Determining the size of a TMT is a key organizational decision as TMT size influences TMT processes and organizational outcomes. Based on a sample of S&P 500 firms from 2011 to 2014, the results show that TMT size ranges from two to 21 executives and that TMTs of different sizes differ little with regard to TMT composition but strongly in terms of TMT structure. Furthermore, we find that TMT size is influenced by firm size, firm growth, and TMT horizontal interdependence. It is not influenced by the environmental conditions and CEO characteristics that were tested. We contribute to the TMT literature by highlighting the characteristics of different TMT sizes and providing new insights into the determinants of TMT size. Our study exposes the power of information-processing theory to explain these determinants.
Language
English
HSG Classification
contribution to scientific community
Pages
39
Subject(s)
Eprints ID
260719
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2020-07-24 TMT size antecedents ERadek.pdf
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893.18 KB
Format
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