Abstract (short):
This study examines how the prior career experiences of decision makers systematically shape their responses to performance shortfalls. We posit that while prior experiences lead managers to develop greater levels of knowledge and skills, they also shape their mental models and enhance their beliefs about their abilities, their predictions, and their strategies, which in turn makes them less responsive to negative performance feedback. We find that more experienced and more specialized fund managers are less likely to initiate changes when faced with negative performance feedback compared with their less experienced or less specialized counterparts. Further, the context within which managers gained their prior experience matters. As performance deteriorates below aspirations, managers with prior experience in high-status organizations and those who have worked previously under munificent environmental conditions are also less responsive compared with their counterparts without such experience. Overall, our paper contributes to the literature on performance feedback by showing that prior experience of decision makers is an important factor that determines an organization’s propensity to initiate strategic change in response to negative performance feedback. Further, the study also contributes to the human capital literature by highlighting a potential unintended side effect of accumulated human capital, namely lower responsiveness to negative performance feedback.

Time: Thursday, November 14th 2019 from 1.00 pm - 2.30 pm

Location: Vienna University of Economics and Business, Meeting Room TC.5.04 (5th floor), Welthandelsplatz 1, 1020 Wien (please check for updates on: https://www.wu.ac.at/ifsto/seminar-series/)

If you are interested in attending the presentation, for planning purposes kindly confirm your interest to Elisabeth Brunner (elisabeth.brunner@wu.ac.at) until November 11th 2019.

The speaker series is hosted jointly by the Institute for Strategy, Technology and Organization (Christopher Lettl) and the Strategic Management Subject Area at the University of Vienna (Markus Reitzig). The series addresses topics at the interface of strategic management, innovation, technology, and organization design. Aim of the series is the facilitation of research dialogue within our department, boundary spanning to other WU departments, and the facilitation of networking with renowned scholars in the field. See http://www.wu.ac.at/ifsto/speaker-series/ for details on future talks (speakers, dates). The series is associated with the RESEARCH PROGRAM ON OPEN INNOVATION of the Institute for Strategy, Technology and Organization.

We are greatly looking forward to seeing you!