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The purpose of this study is to analyze the intersection of research on impact investing and its closely related financial vehicles.

The paper explores 196 articles collected from Scopus and Web of Science using bibliometric and content analysis methodologies.

Despite a growing academic interest in impact investing, scholars generally investigate impact investing as a social phenomenon, using the specific financial mechanism of social impact bonds. This perspective potentially deflates the complex nature of impact investing, which actually combines both social and financial targets and uses a plurality of financial vehicles to reach its goals.

The emerging themes identified will provide both academics and practitioners additional tools to further the debate on impact investing and the understanding of its potential and limits according to the different financial forms it takes. This review should pave the way for a discussion about the boundaries of the social impact sector itself.

Despite the strong international commitment toward impact investing, tensions still exist. A comprehensive overview on the relevant aspects not yet thoroughly investigated will foster the growth of impact investments.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first holistic overview of impact investing, that jointly examines both literature on impact investing and literature on the correlated financial products used in the industry. The result is a comprehensive report of what is known about impact investing in its different financial forms, opening up new pathways for future studies.

In recent years, mandatory rules and regulations were issued to stress the importance of increasing gender diversity in companies, assuming that gender diversity would enhance financial performance. Thus, the purpose of this paper is to review recent research concerning board gender diversity and its impact on financial performance for the period of 2002 to 2022.

Using the Web of Science and Scopus databases, 152 studies were analyzed, out of 91 high-impact journals. The analysis focuses on discussing the moderating, mediating and controlling variables and exploring the theories and theoretical foundations that are most prevalent in the literature.

The findings indicated an incompatibility between the results of the studies on the impact of gender diversity on financial performance. In addition, results showed the majority of studies focused on discussing the controlling variables associated with the company compared to the variables related to employees or the surrounding environment. On the other hand, the results also showed widespread use of the theoretical basis with the development of new theories in the recent period in parallel with the increase in the literature.

The results of this study help to reconcile the findings of the different and conflicting literature by presenting the perception that the efficacy of the positive impact of gender diversity on financial performance is related to several organizational and environmental factors that companies have to consider.

Internationalisation is considered as a key strategy for the growth of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs). The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between dynamic capability, SMEs internationalisation and firm performance in the context of emerging economies and to evaluate the impact of financial, asset and market expansion on internationalisation of SMEs.

Using primary data from 212 SMEs from Bangladesh, structural equation modelling and mathematical (hierarchical reflective) model, the analysis enabled the measurement of the casual relationship on the impacts of internationalisation.

The results revealed that internationalisation of SMEs has significant impact on both financial and non-financial performance of SMEs in an emerging economy- Bangladesh. The paper found internationalisation impacts on two dimensions (financial and non-financial) with eight defined indicators – higher sales, higher profit, assets maximisation, market expansion, competitive advantage, better reputation, better customer service and added knowledge.

Despite several studies that examine the relationship between SME internationalisation and firm performance, limited research exists on emerging economies. This is contrary to the fact that SMEs are one of the main vehicles for growth in those economies such as Bangladesh. In this research, the authors use the theories of dynamic capabilities to conceptualise how internationalisation becomes a core SME capability for SMEs in an emerging economy.

In this chapter, we reexamine the notion that socially responsible behavior by firms will lead to increased financial performance. By identifying the underlying processes, institutional settings, and actors involved, we present a framework that is more attentive to the multiplicity and conditionality of the mechanisms operating in the often tenuous connection between firms’ social behavior and financial performance. Building and expanding upon existing analyses of the CSP–CFP linkage, our model helps to explain the mixed results from a wide range of empirical studies which examine this link. It also provides a novel theoretical account to help guide future researches that are more attentive to conditionalities and contextual contingencies.

Although the management and financial literature is replete with much research looking at the impact of downsizing on the financial health and market valuation of companies employing this practice, there has been very little attention paid to the size of the downsizing effort and its impact. The purpose of this paper is to try and address this lack by looking at companies that downsized in 2008, considering the relative size of the downsizing, and the ongoing financial health and market valuation of the companies.

The impact of the size or severity of the downsizing event was assessed using various financial measures as well as a measure of market valuation from one to five years after the downsizing event. A data set of 251 companies that were in the Fortune 500 in 2014 and also in the Fortune 500 in 2008, that either did not change or decreased headcount were assessed longitudinally over a five-year period.

Findings indicate that the size or severity of the downsizing did not impact any measures of profitability or efficiency or market valuation, with one exception. The size of the downsizing event was negatively related to return on investment, one year after the downsizing. On the other hand, the size or severity of the downsizing had a positive relationship on the companies’ ability to have enough cash at hand to cover expenses (current ratio) from one to four years after the downsizing.

This work may provide additional support for the “band-aid solution” theory of downsizing, as suggested by Carriger (2016), downsizing may stop the bleeding but does not address the underlying financial or strategic issue leading to the need to downsize. The hope is that this work will better inform scholars and practitioners, providing a more nuanced picture of the impact of downsizing on corporate financial health and market valuation.

Today, information systems and technology provides a wide set of tools for companies to increase the efficiency of their businesses. Although technology offers many benefits to businesses, it also brings risks as the information systems security breaches. Security breaches and their financial impact is a constant concern of the researchers and practitioners. This paper explores information systems breaches and their financial impacts on the publicly traded companies in different sectors.

After a comprehensive data collection process, data from 192 events are analyzed by employing Event Study Methodology and a comparison of the results between the four highly affected sectors (Consumer Goods, Technology, Financial and Communications) is presented. The abnormal returns on the prices of stocks after the events are calculated with the Market Model. Also, the results of the Market Adjusted Model and Mean Adjusted Model are presented to support the results.

While information systems security breaches have a significant negative impact on the Financials and the Technology sectors for all the event windows in the study ([−5, 0], [−5, 1], [−5, 5], and [−5, 10]), the significant negative impact is observed only on the [−5, 5] and [−5, 10] event windows for the Consumer Goods sector. No significant negative impact is observed in the Communications sector, in fact, the cumulative abnormal returns are positive for this sector.

The contribution of this paper to provide evidence about the financial impacts of the information systems breaches for businesses in different sectors. While there are studies that have previously focused on the information systems breaches and their financial impacts on businesses, to the best of our knowledge, this is the first study that compares this effect between the four highly impacted sectors. With a relatively larger sample size and broader event windows than the past studies in the literature, statistical evidence is provided to managers to justify their investments in information security and build preventive measures to secure the market value of their firms.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the financial statement impacts of adopting NZ IFRS during 2005 through 2008.

The effects of NZ IFRS on the financial statements and ratios of first‐time adopters of NZ IFRS for a stratified random sample of 56 listed companies is analysed. In total, 16 of these were early adopters and 40 of which waited until adoption of NZ IFRS became mandatory. The analysis of the financial statement impact of NZ IFRS is conducted in the context of the accounting choice literature.

The results show that 87 per cent of firms are affected by NZ IFRS. The median and inter‐quartile ranges indicate that for most firms the impact of NZ IFRS is small. However, the maximum and minimum values indicate the impact can be large for some entities. The impact has considerable effects on common financial ratios.

The usual limitations applicable to small samples apply.

The findings may be useful to regulators and policy makers reviewing financial reporting requirements.

This study is the first to offer a comprehensive empirical analysis of the effect of adopting IFRS on financial statements in New Zealand, as well as on selected key ratios of interest to financial analysts. The data used are more recent than most IAS or IFRS studies around the world and are stratified to allow for comparison between voluntary/early adopters and mandatory/late adopters.

The purpose of this study is to examine the influence of corporate governance mechanisms recommended by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) of Ghana on firm performance as measured by accounting-based ratios (return on assets, return on equity and earning per share) as well as market-based measure (Tobin’s Q) among listed Ghanaian companies from 2006 to 2018. These mechanisms are: board composition (board size, inside directors and outside directors), board committees (audit, remuneration and nomination), chief executive officer (CEO) duality/separation, board meetings and shareholder concentration.

The study used panel regression analysis of data from 38 listed firms in Ghana from 2006 to 2018 to test how each corporate governance variable initiated by the SEC of Ghana contributed to firm performance. Data were extracted from the annual reports of listed companies.

The study found that the presence of both insiders and outsiders on the corporate board improved financial performance. Similarly, board size, frequency of board meetings and shareholder concentration/ownership structure generally had a positive impact on financial performance. However, the presence of board committees generally had a negative impact on financial performance while CEO duality had no impact on financial performance.

The study contributes to the understanding of how good corporate governance practices affect firm performance for both academics and particularly Ghanaian policymakers.

This study provided new findings to bridge the gaps in the general corporate governance literature relative to the lack of consensus on financial impacts of corporate governance mechanisms. The finding contributes to knowledge by providing new and original evidence that some current corporate governance mechanisms are not effective in minimizing the agency problem in a developing setting. Furthermore, the authors anticipate that the outcomes of this research, which so far is the most comprehensive study in the Ghanaian context in terms of the coverage of corporate governance mechanisms specified by the SEC of Ghana, can significantly shape corporate governance discourse, practices and policies in Ghana, particularly and in other developing countries generally to improve financial performance and corporate sustainability.