Does the Government Spending Multiplier Depend on the Business Cycle?

Abstract

We investigate the state dependency of the government spending multiplier across the business cycle using a nonlinear two-regime VAR model. We find little evidence that multipliers vary between expansionary and recessionary periods. This is because the state of the business cycle itself changes after government spending shocks and converges toward a similar state. This result holds true regardless of how we model the business cycle. Our analysis shows that assumptions about the economic state built into linear impulse response functions are the key driver of the state dependency reported elsewhere in the literature.

Non‐executive Employee Ownership and Target Selection in High‐Tech Mergers and Acquisitions

Abstract

The quest to build and expand a firm's human capital is a key driver for mergers and acquisitions (M&As), but acquiring firms often face the threat of losing their targets' key employees in the post-M&A period. This is particularly true for high-tech M&As, as human capital is especially important in high-tech industries. Because non-executive employee ownership can incentivize employees to invest in firm-specific human capital, reducing the likelihood that employees will leave, we argue that when screening for potential M&A targets, acquiring firms are more likely to target companies with higher levels of employee ownership. We also argue that the screening role of employee ownership in M&A target selection will be stronger when targets have higher R&D intensity but weaker when targets treat their employees better. Using a sample of 26,137 firm-year observations, we find support for our arguments. Findings from this study contribute to M&A research by highlighting the importance of non-executive employee ownership as a screen for human capital retention in M&A target selection.

Vintage capital and trade credit

Abstract

This paper examines whether and how capital age influences trade credit extended by suppliers. We find that firms with older capital are associated with a reduction in trade credit offered by suppliers, which is consistent with the view that vintage capital, with outdated technology, is detrimental to firms. Employee outside opportunity, labour mobility and organisational capital are important factors that moderate the association between capital age on trade credit. Our findings are not driven by specific industry sectors or periods and remain robust to alternative measures of trade credit and to endogeneity concerns. In addition, we show evidence that shareholders view vintage capital as value-destructive. In sum, this study reveals that risk exposure associated with capital age matters for corporate trade credit decisions.

Managerial inclusiveness and corporate innovation in China

Abstract

This study explores how managerial inclusiveness affects corporate innovation. Using an annual dataset of A-share Chinese listed companies from 2008 to 2021, we find that managerial inclusiveness is positively related to corporate innovation. Market competition and team heterogeneity positively moderate the relationship between managerial inclusiveness and innovation. In addition, managerial inclusiveness in state-owned enterprises plays a more significant role in promoting corporate innovation than it does in non-state-owned enterprises. By investigating the mechanism of influence, we found that inclusive managers can promote corporate innovation by relaxing internal controls and increasing corporate risk-taking.

Does Leadership Style and HRM Practices Promote Employee Well-being Post Onset of the New Normal? A Mixed-method Approach

South Asian Journal of Human Resources Management, Ahead of Print.
The immediate establishment of ‘a new normal’ in response to the present global crisis made leaders relook into the well-being of their employees through a new lens. Hence, promoting empowering leadership in any organisation to attain employee well-being became the key to surviving the detrimental impact of endangered organisational productivity. In line with two promising theories (social exchange and social learning), we proposed to join empowering leadership and employee well-being through activity-enhancing, opportunity-enhancing, motivation-enhancing, work–life balance-enhancing and voice-enhancing related human resources management (HRM) practices. A two-phase exploratory sequential mixed-method process was designed to identify and analyse the role of HRM practices on promoting well-being during the onset of the new normal. Results of the multi-mediation model conducted on 328 executives of private banks in eastern India—demonstrated participative decision-making as a rewarding impact of autonomy and freedom. It highlighted achieving employee well-being as a flow experience. Our findings propose the techno-functionality of empowering leadership in redefining the holistic concept of well-being for socio-tropic continents like India, which may help establish actual well-being as a panacea to evolving work lives.

Millennial Customer Engagement with Fintech Services: The Mediating Role of Trust

Business Perspectives and Research, Ahead of Print.
The study investigates the impacts of Fintech services (such as e-payment service (EPS), Robo-advisory, Regtech service (RTS), and financing service (FS)) on millennial customer engagement (CE) in the context of the private banking sector of Bangladesh. It also examines the mediating role of trust between Fintech services and CE relationships. Data for this study were collected through a structured survey questionnaire from 294 customers (only Fintech users) of different private banks in Bangladesh. The convenience sampling technique was used to select millennial customers. SPSS and SmartPLS software were used for data analysis. The results exhibited that EPS, Robo-advisory, and FS positively impact CE, while RTS was found insignificant with CE. Besides, customer trust (CT) mediates the relationships among EPSs, Robo-advisory, and FSs with CE. Conversely, CT does not mediate the RTS and CE relationship. The study findings contribute to the substantial pool of knowledge in Fintech services, CE, and consumer trust. Remarkably, the mediating role of CT between the Fintech services and CE relationship is the unique novelty of this study and will enrich the existing Fintech literature from Bangladesh’s perspective.

Transitory and permanent shock transmissions between real estate investment trusts and other assets: Evidence from time‐frequency decomposition and machine learning

Abstract

We evaluate asset returns and volatility connectedness using the time-frequency connectedness model and machine learning approaches. Using 48 years of monthly indices of equity real estate investment trusts (EREITs), mortgage real estate investment trusts (MREITs), stocks, commodities, and bonds, we find that shocks to EREIT, and MREIT returns have a transitory impact on other assets. However, asset volatility connectedness among assets occurs at lower frequencies as markets slowly process pricing information. Therefore, shocks to EREIT and MREIT decay gradually and spill over to the other three assets for long periods. We also find that the intensity of the time-frequency connectedness of returns and volatility varies with business cycles and significant domestic and global non-recession events. We attribute the dominance of real estate investment trusts (REITs) in destabilising the financial system through long-term volatility transmission to the heavy linkage of REITs to highly illiquid underlying direct real estate markets and high REITs leverage, making them more sensitive to real estate fundamentals, monetary shocks and macroeconomic risks than stocks and bonds. The result of the algorithm-based GA2M machine learning model broadly supports the dominance of EREITs in the transmission of returns and volatility and shows that commodities have more explanatory power in the transmission of volatility than in returns. The empirical findings have implications for strategic and tactical asset allocation and policy design for market stability.