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Does CEO openness matter when explaining firm internationalization decisions: evidence from China

Weihong Chen (School of Economics, Guangxi University, Nanning, China)
Xi Zhong (School of Management, Guangdong University of Technology, Guangzhou, China)
Hailin Lan (School of Business Administration, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou, China) (Research Center of Chinese Corporate Strategic Management, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou, China)

International Journal of Emerging Markets

ISSN: 1746-8809

Article publication date: 17 November 2022

284

Abstract

Purpose

The impact of executive characteristics on firm internationalization has already been extensively explored. However, relatively few studies have examined the critical role of chief executive officer (CEO) personality attributes, and especially CEO openness, in firm internationalization. This research aims to deepen the understanding of firm internationalization, by exploring whether and when CEO openness influences firm internationalization.

Design/methodology/approach

A sample of private high-tech listed firms in China is used, with data from 2004 to 2020.

Findings

Based on upper echelons theory, this study theorizes and finds that CEO openness will positively influence firm internationalization. Further, based on the behavioral theory of the firm, this study finds that the performance aspiration gap weakens the positive effect of CEO openness on firm internationalization, but also finds that the potential slack strengthens this effect.

Originality/value

First, the study reinterprets firm internationalization strategies from the perspective of CEO openness, a personality attribute; CEO openness is an important but so far rarely discussed topic in the field of international business. Second, for the first time, problemistic search and slack search into a research framework are introduced to explore the relationship between CEO characteristics and firm internationalization. This approach can further define the boundary conditions under which CEOs can project their values, preferences and personalities into the process of formulating and implementing a firm's internationalization strategy.

Keywords

Acknowledgements

The authors are grateful to Editor-in-Chief prof. Ilan Alon, Senior Editor Dr. Pooja Thakur-Wernz, and three anonymous reviewers for their insightful comments and suggestions. Weihong Chen appreciates the National Natural Science Foundation Project of China (Grant No. 72174067) and the Key Research Base of Humanities and Social Sciences in Guangxi Universities and the project of Guangxi Development Strategy Institute (Grant No. 2022GDSIYB02); Xi Zhong appreciates the National Natural Science Foundation Project of China (Grant No. 72202043) and the Guangdong Basic and Applied Basic Research Foundation (Grant No. 2021A1515110864; Grant No. 2022A1515010292).

Citation

Chen, W., Zhong, X. and Lan, H. (2022), "Does CEO openness matter when explaining firm internationalization decisions: evidence from China", International Journal of Emerging Markets, Vol. ahead-of-print No. ahead-of-print. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJOEM-01-2022-0031

Publisher

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Emerald Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2022, Emerald Publishing Limited

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