Leadership and Governance

Leadership

In a world of globalization, technological innovation, COVID19, and other (disruptive) societal challenges, effective leadership is a critical determinant of organizational performance. However, systematic empirical knowledge about the impact of large-scale changes via leadership on organizational performance is still scarce. By taking an interdisciplinary approach in which we combine economics and psychology, we are among the first to investigate how leaders are affected by these challenges and how this matters for organizational performance. The expected impact of our research is not only academic in the sense of advancing the field of management and leadership research, but also practical, by generating applicable knowledge for organizations and policy makers alike.

Governance

Since the Enron scandal in 2001 and the financial crisis in 2008, the apparent lack of effectiveness of boards has been the core of heated debates. As a consequence many new regulatory systems have been put into place to control decision making by corporate boards to avoid more corporate problems. However, ongoing corporate scandals and public discussions about board remuneration decisions illustrate that, despite increased regulation, boards are still not always effective in managing their organizations.

Therefore, identifying the conditions under which boards thrive remains an important question. The central aim of this signature area is to examine the conditions that will make boards effective. We will generate valuable knowledge on why boards are not always effective in meeting shareholder demands, and which conditions will help them to improve their functioning.

Key Researchers

• Prof. Harry Garretsen
• Prof. Niels Hermes
• Prof. Reggy Hooghiemstra
• Prof. Onne Janssen
• Prof. Janka Stoker
• Prof. Floor Rink
• Prof. Gerben van der Vegt