In public corporations, owners and lenders invest capital in the expectation of economic returns, while professional managers are responsible for the strategic decisions that yield economic returns and impact various stakeholders. Strategic leaders are the top management teams that formulate and implement strategy to create firm value. Governance refers to the monitoring and incentive mechanisms that align the interests of managers with those of the suppliers of capital. Strategic leadership is shaped by the demographic characteristics and behavioral biases of top management teams and by the discretion afforded by a firm's characteristics and external environmental context. Governance mechanisms include the incentives and monitoring provided by shareholders and lenders, the boards of directors; executive selection, succession, and compensation; and the market for corporate control. More generally, all organizations, private and public, for profit and nonprofit, small and large, need strategic leaders that shape strategy, and governance mechanisms that monitor and incentivize strategic leaders. Strategic leadership and governance shapes and is shaped by firm strategy and performance in various institutional contexts and regulatory regimes.
We welcome work from a variety of theoretical disciplines that addresses questions relating to strategic leadership and governance. Likely research questions include:
The Behavioral Strategy and Strategic Leadership & Governance Interest Groups are pleased to support the annual Sucheta Nadkarni Award for Outstanding Publication on Women Executive Leadership. We are grateful to Cambridge Judge Business School at the University of Cambridge for sponsoring this award in memory of our friend and colleague Sucheta Nadkarni (1967-2019). The award recognizes a refereed journal publication with potential to significantly impact our understanding of women executive leadership.
