Ownership and Performance of Professional Service Firms

Research output: Journal Publications and ReviewsRGC 21 - Publication in refereed journalpeer-review

83 Scopus Citations
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Author(s)

Detail(s)

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)219-238
Journal / PublicationOrganization Studies
Volume28
Issue number2
Online published1 Feb 2007
Publication statusPublished - Feb 2007
Externally publishedYes

Abstract

Understanding the effects of ownership upon organizational performance is a well-established theme in organization theory, but comparison across ownership forms has been neglected. We develop hypotheses comparing public corporations, private corporations and partnerships and test them in a sample of large management consultancies. We find that private corporations and partnerships outperform public corporations. We attribute this difference to increased monitoring by owners and greater motivation by professional workers seeking ownership stakes. Contrary to Durand and Vargas (2003), we find that organizational complexity has neither a direct nor a moderating effect. Copyright © 2007 SAGE Publications.

Research Area(s)

  • Organizational performance, Ownership, Professional service firms

Citation Format(s)

Ownership and Performance of Professional Service Firms. / Greenwood, Royston; Deephouse, David L.; Li, Stan Xiao.
In: Organization Studies, Vol. 28, No. 2, 02.2007, p. 219-238.

Research output: Journal Publications and ReviewsRGC 21 - Publication in refereed journalpeer-review