Generalist versus specialist CEO and R&D commitment: evidence from an emerging market

Arpita Agnihotri and Saurabh Bhattacharya

Journal of Management & Organization, 2025, vol. 31, issue 4, 1837-1853

Abstract: Leveraging the human capital specificity and the Chief Executive Officer (CEO)–top management team (TMT) interface literature, this study explores the impact of generalist versus specialist CEOs on R&D commitments by Indian firms under the boundary conditions of TMTs' functional and educational diversity. Based on a sample of 253 firms over a period of 6 years, in contrast to previous studies, our findings suggest that specialist CEOs are more likely to invest in R&D than generalist CEOs; however, when supported by functionally and educationally diverse TMT, the R&D commitment of generalist CEOs increases as well.

Date: 2025
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:cup:jomorg:v:31:y:2025:i:4:p:1837-1853_12

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