管理者聯結對企業成長的影響﹕基於政治商業和學術型聯結的分析

Abstract

The external environment faced by enterprises is becoming increasingly complex due to the effects of intensified international trade disputes and the shock of the pandemic. Enterprises do not operate in isolation; rather, they are embdeded within the network of other stakeholders. The growth of enterprises relies on external resources, information, and business opportunities, which are deeply rooted in external relationships (i.e. social ties). Reducting external uncertainty and obtaining external supports are vital for driving sustainable development and growth, especially when taking into accout the institutional voids or market failure in transitional economies. Enterpresies tend to seek informal institutional arrangements such as social ties to reduce transaction costs and build competitive advantages.

This dissertation explores the impact of managers' social ties on corporate growth. Particularly, it adds to the liteature on managerial ties which focuses on political ties and business ties by identifying another managerial ties—academic ties, as a knowledge-based tie. In-depth interviews, multiple case studies, and empirical analyses are conducted to examine the impact of different types of social ties on firm growth and the moderating role of the market environment (marketization index). Notably, the scope of social ties in the current study extends beyond the network of individual directors/CEOs by incoporating the top management team. Using publicly listed companies in Shanghai and Shenzhen stock market, this study empirically tested the influeces of different social ties on enterprise growth. Specifically, two studies are conducted to investigate how different types of social ties affect firm growth.

Study 1 explores two research questions through in-depth interviews: (1) What types of social ties do enterpreises construct? Unlike the existing literature which focuses on political and business ties, this study identifies an under-studied type of social tie—the academic ties (i.e., connections between firms and organizations with academic and professional backgrounds); (2) Whether and how different types of social ties affect enterprise growth?

Study 2 empirically examines the impact of different types of social ties on enterprise growth based on publicly listed Chiense enterprises, and thus tests some of the findings of Study 1. The results show that all three types of social ties have positve impacts on enterprise growth. Moreover, market development (manifested as the marketization index) substitutes for the role of political ties on enterprise growth.

Through qualitative interviews, this study constructs a more comprehensive categorization framework of social ties, namely, political, business, and academic ties. This categorization theoretically extends the theory of social networks. The empirical findings add to our understanding of how managerial ties contribute to enterprise growth, and hence are of strong practical significance. Clarifying the role of different social ties, the characteristics of their resource advantages, and the mechanisms can help enterprises better understand the significance of social embeddedness. Overally, the thesis sheds lights on how effectively manage social ties for higher enterprise growth.

Date of Award	18 Mar 2024
Original language	Chinese (Traditional)
Awarding Institution	City University of Hong Kong
Supervisor	Zhilin YANG (Supervisor) & Changjiang LYU (External Supervisor)