Int. J. Management and Decision Making, Vol. 17, No.

1, 2018 95

Top management teams: a bibliometric research from

2005 to 2015

Giseli Alves Silvente*

Federal University of Matro Grosso (UFMT),
Av. Fernando Corrêa da Costa, s/n,
Coxipó, 78070-000, Cuiabá – MT, Brazil
Email: giselias@[Link]
*Corresponding author

Clébia Ciupak
Federal University of Mato Grosso (UFMT),
Av. Fernando Corrêa da Costa, 2367,
Boa Esperança, 78060-900, Cuiabá, MT, Brazil
Email: [Link]@[Link]

Julio Araujo Carneiro-da-Cunha

Nove de Julho University (UNINOVE),
Av. Francisco Matarazzo, 612, prédio C, 2º andar
Água Branca, 05001-100, São Paulo, SP, Brazil
Email: juliocunha@[Link]

Abstract: This article aims to identify the main characteristics of the works on
top management team (TMT). Firstly, it was related to the classic and current
authors who research TMT performing a bibliometric research in the scientific
journals of Web of Science, in the period from 2005 to 2015 (inclusive). Later,
in order to raise the main evolutionary approaches, the years 2013, 2014 and
2015 specifically were analysed and for the reason that this period reflects the
current tendency of the theme. The results were processed in the software
Bibexcel and this generated a matrix of citation and co-citations, whose data
were submitted to an exploratory factor analysis, from which five factors were
identified. These were named in accordance to the main approach of the classic
and authors, namely: 1) competencies of top management team; 2) features of
top managers; 3) effect of demographic lines failures; 4) salary disparities
among CEOs; 5) organisational learning. Among the evolutionary approaches
of the authors who continue researching the theme, we highlight the interest in
the context of TMT in family companies, gender diversity in the team and the
internal and external influences of TMT. From the study, it can be concluded
that the researches on human and behavioural aspects of TMT are constantly
growing, since they accompany the evolutionary process of organisations.
There is an increase in the tendency to study decision making under the human
and behavioural aspect and not only under the structured and rational aspect.

Keywords: top management team; TMT; CEO; evolutionary approach;

bibliometric research.

Copyright © 2018 Inderscience Enterprises Ltd.

96 G.A. Silvente et al.

Reference to this paper should be made as follows: Silvente, G.A., Ciupak, C.

and Carneiro-da-Cunha, J.A. (2018) ‘Top management teams: a bibliometric
research from 2005 to 2015’, Int. J. Management and Decision Making,
Vol. 17, No. 1, pp.95–124.

Biographical notes: Giseli Alves Silvente is a Professor from the Federal

University of Mato Grosso, Brazil. Her main research interests are accounting
and tax accounting.

Clébia Ciupak is a Professor from the Federal University of Mato Grosso,

Brazil. Her main research interests are accounting and auditing.

Julio Araujo Carneiro-da-Cunha is a Professor from the Nove de Julho

University, Brazil. His main research interests are strategy, strategic
performance management, and inter-organisational networks.

This paper is a revised and expanded version of a paper entitled ‘Equipes de

Gestão de Topo: Uma Pesquisa Bibliometrica de 2005 a 2015’ presented
at V SINGEP (Simpósio Internacional de Gestão de Projetos, Inovação e
Sustentabilidade), São Paulo, Brazil, 21–22 November 2016.

1 Introduction

The economic financial adversities, such as the interferences of government policies, the
economic crisis of the country, and the high level of business competitiveness added to
the marketing requirements, more avid consumers for affordable quality products, the
competition proliferation, the need for stronger organisational control, require that the
companies constantly and rapidly take more assertive decisions that enable the
organisation to meet its objectives and so be able to achieve better results. The decisions
are taken by the high-level managers of the company together with the top management
team (TMT) aiming to conduct the decision-making process in order to optimise the
usage of the financial physical and organisational resources and may also meet particular
interests rather than those of the company. According to Barney (1991), those resources
are controlled by the company and enable the strategic decision operationalisation.
In this regard, so that the organisation may be competitive, the high-level managers
need skills, expertise and ability compatible with the strategic decision-making process.
According to Serra et al. (2014), the TMT of the companies can be one of the
fundamental strategic resources and its decisions should be based on extreme caution and
significant rapidity, since the competences and abilities which this team makes company
generate useful and timely data that support the decision-making process.
Despite the importance of the subject, after searching the Web of Science database
regarding TMT, few review studies which consider the approaches elaborated till then
were found. Therefore, this work contributes profoundly to academia for the reason that it
presents in a condensed and systematic manner a study which details the characteristics
of the works developed about TMT in the last ten years, demonstrating this way the
longitudinal progress and the academia’s interest for the subject, since the high-level
managers and the TMTs are essential tools for the existence of a company. It should be
 Top management teams 97

highlighted that this article aims to identify the main characteristics of the works about
TMT. In this regard, there must be the achievement of some specific objectives, namely:
1 Relate the main classical and current authors who research TMT.
2 Raise the main approaches about the subject.
For this purpose, it is adopted as methodology a bibliometric research in the journals of
the international scientific basis Web of Science, in the time period of 2005–2015
(inclusive), having as search keywords the term ‘TMT’, in the ‘topic’. Therefore, this
time period reflects the evolving tendency of studies about this subject. The results were
processed firstly in the software Bibexcel, which generated a matrix of quotations and
co-quotations, and this one subsequently was granted another statistic treatment, in the
Software SPSS, being possible, through the exploratory factor analysis, the identification
of five factors.
Structurally the article is divided into parts, being the first of which the study
introduction, followed by the theoretical approach, the methodology and finally the result
analysis and the concluding remarks, as well as the references used. It is expected to
contribute to science in so far as it is possible to structure and systematise the conceptual
part considered to organise the TMTs since in most cases the authors present in their
works the subject solely under the managerial and contextual aegis.

2 Theoretical review

We present hereinafter a brief conceptual approach about the subject TMT.

2.1 Top management teams

We begin this topic presenting the main characteristics of the TMT.

2.1.1 Characteristics of the TMTs

Understanding the relationship between the managers and the strategic behaviour is vital
for the organisation, since in general the decision-making process must be timely, urgent
and useful. According to Ramos and Roglio (2013), the researches about the subject have
been performed in order to get to know the main characteristics of TMT as well as what
these affect, positively or negatively, in the strategic decisions made by the organisation.
This effort is justified by the necessity of improving the organisational results, and by the
pursuit of adaptation between the characteristics of the managers and the challenges
posed by the competitive scenario. In this connection, it is possible to point several lines
of study about the decision-making process in the organisations, however; the most
traditional paradigms are the rationalist and political perspective. Regarding rationality it
is concerned to comprehend better the decision-making points, the rational judgements
and the limitations of data source and processing. When it comes to political issue, it is
aimed to analyse the influence of the use of power in decision-making (Ramos and
Roglio, 2013).
98 G.A. Silvente et al.

According to Papadakis and Barwise (2002), the forerunners who discussed the
subjects of TMTs were Hambrick and Mason (1984), who developed a study about the
importance and characteristics of the TMTs and hence it was found that the greatest
importance of TMT is in its influence on decisions as well as the importance in the
strategic decision making for the performance of the organisations. For these authors, the
characteristics were divided into perceptible and psychological ones. The first refer to the
aid in the formation of psychological characteristics and include easily identifiable data,
such as age, education, etc. In relation to the latter, the study of the authors, which have
knowledge base and can also be linked to personal values, and therefore are more
difficult to be measured (Serra et al., 2014).
Further about the characteristics of TMT under the vision of (Hambrick and Mason,
1984), we should mention that the same were divided into psychological and observable
ones, according to Figure 1.

Figure 1 Characteristics of TMT (see online version for colours)

TMT characterisics

Psychological Observable

Knowledge base values Age

Functional ranges

Other career experiences

Education

Social and economical antecedents

Financial position

Characteristics of the group

Source: Adapted from Hambrick and Mason (1984)

In the psychological perspective are found the knowledge base, values and personality.
Cognitivist studies seek a better comprehension of how the thought processes of the
individuals affect their perception of reality and subsequent behaviours (Ramos and
Roglio, 2013). About age, it is important to highlight the idea that younger officers are
associated to managers linked to growing companies and that are more likely to take a
risk. However, less young officers are more conservative since their physical and mental
strength is lower, although they have a greater organisational commitment and are not
willing to take a risk, mainly due to the fear that their financial and professional life could
be affected. Regarding functional range, we face the question that functional areas which
the officers went past affect somehow the decisions made by the same. In relation to
other experiences in the career, it is emphasised the reasoning that managers outside the
company bring with themselves other experiences, being more willing to changes and
more receptive to opportunities.
With respect to education, it is assumed that having training means having expertise
and therefore the education level of TMTs is positively related with receptiveness and
 Top management teams 99

innovation. The socioeconomic issues depict the influence of origin of the executives in
the decision-making process. When it comes to financial position, it is highlighted that
the organisational financial result is not related to the owners, but rather to the return to
the managers who may or not belong to the company shareholding structure. In terms of
features of the group of TMT, we identify that both heterogeneous and homogeneous
groups must be analysed, because in stable environments the team’s homogeneity is
related positively to profitability, and in complex environments the team’s heterogeneity
shall be related positively to profitability (Hambrick and Mason, 1984).
The study also argues that the organisations are a reflection of values and knowledge
bases of their TMT, and it is highlighted the great dominant coalition power in the
elaboration and the adoption of the best organisational strategies, in the search to achieve
a high level of corporate performance (Hambrick and Mason, 1984). Furthermore
according to (Hambrick and Mason, 1984), the studies about TMT bring three benefits to
organisations, namely:
1 They enable the prior identification of organisational results.
2 Provide the selection and development of managers of a better educational level.
3 Focus their efforts to get to know and anticipate the actions/reactions of competing
companies.
TMT may be impacted by some variables:
1 heterogeneity of composition
2 age and background diversity of the executives
3 the diversity of demographic composition.
Demonstrating what was stated, Murray (1989), when quoted by Serra et al. (2014)
mentioned that the team’s heterogeneity affects performance in a two-fold manner: by
low process of socialisation, which may require greater exploration of strategic
alternatives, and by a broader background range which can help in the identification of
new strategies. For (Dolz et al., 2015), the age and background diversity of the executives
of TMT have been related to the ability to perceive change and take different levels of
risk capable of responding to environmental changes.
The diversity of demographic composition of TMT has been related to the wealth of
information that is taken into consideration, but also to the difficulty to achieve
consensus, and at this point it is important to mention that the managerial decisions are
influenced mostly by emotional issues of the managers originating from behavioural
factors, ambition levels, social culture, etc., to the detriment of human rationality
(Nielsen, 2010). Hambrick and Mason (1984) also reaffirm such positioning when they
quote that the complex decisions are mostly the result of behavioural factors instead of a
mechanical search for economic optimisation, and in this respect it is important to
highlight that the strategic decisions can be affected by the behaviour of the managers,
unlike the operating decisions which are nothing more than direct and calculable
decisions in the organisation. Furthermore regarding the diversity of TMT, Carpenter
(2002) observes that it is related to the abilities and expertise of the decision makers and
this appears to be an opposing force, and also provide TMT access to a wide range of
information and social knowledge bases. For this reason, it is believed that the
100 G.A. Silvente et al.

heterogeneity of TMT brings more benefits to the companies with complex environments
in which the differences between the team members become an attractive to debates
about the better decision to be made about a subject.
With respect to multinational companies, the TMTs need to know and manage the
operations in accordance to each region, as well as need to cope with international
demands (Greve et al., 2015). This is because each region have its peculiarities and
specific demands, such as specific cultures, climate that enables different productions,
geographical location for production flow, tax incentives, offered by the government.
Massis et al. (2015) point out that the behavioural theory is responsible for
highlighting the negative consequences of family engagement such as lack of
self-control, which might lead it to become more risk averse, and unconsciously favour
decisions that damage company and family. Finally it is possible to determine that the
high-management teams make strategic decisions, and the quality and the time these
decisions are made determine the organisational performance. And in this way for
Johnson and Lederer (2010), good relations between information technology managerial
team and its TMT contribute to a strategic alignment of the IT role and organisational
strategy, leading to organisational performance improvement.
We can see that CEO’s work together with TMT presents strategic solutions that meet
the needs imposed by the external environment. Studies about the composition of TMT
elaborated by Carpenter et al. (2004) denote CEO’s dominance and the diversity of
interaction levels of TMT which affect the strategic decision making (Papadakis and
Barwise, 2002).

2.1.2 Structure of TMTs

The structure of TMT has several elements which can determine the team’s
interdependence level. Johnson et al. (2006) highlight three of the critical aspects of
team’s structure which form the interdependence: horizontal, vertical, and reward to the
interdependence. The horizontal interdependence is the level at which it is arranged in
such a way that the actions and effectiveness of their peers affect each other. Of particular
relevance in the context of TMT is the distinction between a division and a functional
structure. The greater the horizontal interdependence, the more TMT members are
influenced by each other’s actions and attributes, and therefore, more heterogeneity will
influence processes and social results. The vertical interdependence refers to the degree
to which members are peers, as opposed to disparate hierarchies. The implicit image of a
TMT is a CEO and a set of direct reports of the same hierarchical stature, they all say
under the title of executive. The reward for interdependence is yet the level to which
members receive rewards for the performance of the company (or group) rather than
subunit or individual performance. In general, what can be noticed is that directly or
indirectly TMT is the guide of the decision-making process. Its influence is composed of
a mixture of personal characteristics, its life experiences and professionals, its age, its
values and its specific abilities and competences acquired according to its cognitive base.
On the other hand, it is also true to say that the other part of its management is influenced
by more rational characteristics based on precise information and great objectivity. Based
on the theoretical context presented here, the next section will present the methodology
used in this paper.
 Top management teams 101

2.1.3 Competencies and organisational learning of TMTs

According to Spencer (1993, quoted by Pereira et al., 2006), the concept of competence is
thought of as a set of knowledge, skills and attitudes, that is, a set of human abilities that
justifies a high performance, believing that the best performances are based on the
intelligence and the personality of the people. This approach considers competence,
therefore, as a stock of resources that the individual holds. The evaluation of individual
competence is made, however, in relation to the set of tasks of the position or status
occupied by the person.
However according to Prahalad e Hamel (1990, quoted by Brandão and Guimarães,
2001), they deal with the concept at the organisational level, referring to competence as a
set of knowledge, skills, technologies, physical and managerial systems inherent in an
organisation. Thus, organisational core competencies are those that confer competitive
advantage, generate distinctive value perceived by customers, and are difficult to be
imitated by competitors. It is possible, therefore, to classify the competences as human
those related to the individual or to the work team or organisational ones that concern the
organisation as a whole. Fleury and Fleury (2001, quoted by Pereira et. al., 2006) argue
that mapping and developing organisational and individual competencies have become
one of the strategies of large companies to reach their final consumer more efficiently. It
is part of this strategy, the training of employees and partners of an organisation, so that
they know profoundly the product they sell and, therefore, have a greater influence on the
customer’s decision. For it is no use for a company to strive to make an excellent product
if its internal customers do not know the information about what they produce or sell.
There are basically two types of organisational competencies: the basic ones, which
guarantee the survival of a company, because if it does not have these competences, it
will be out of the market; and the essential ones that allow the differentiation of a
company in the market. Quality management nowadays, for example, for many
companies, is part of a core competency, but it is still important.
Pereira (2002) says that competence is the ability to generate observable results,
necessary to reach the objectives (business and cultural) defined in the strategic
positioning of the company and in the purpose of maintaining and developing its essential
ideology. It is a concept that defines the attitudes, skills and knowledge necessary to
achieve differentiated results, the set of qualifications that the person has to perform a job
with a higher level of performance. TMT can be considered as important and
fundamental organisational ‘leaders’. Pereira et al. (2006) define two basic skills
(competencies) that must be present in the leaders to make effective the implementation
of strategies: human skills and conceptual skills. Human skills represent the ability to
interact with people, communicate clearly, motivate employees and value results.
Conceptual skills refer to the ability to look at the whole, to have a systemic view of the
processes and their interactions with the external environment (market, clients,
government). In the future, the crucial competence of companies will be the ability to
creatively and continually destroy themselves and remake themselves to meet the
demands of the consumer. Everyone in the organisation should have the responsibility to
take immediate action, as a company needs leadership throughout the organisation, and
this leadership is the ability to see reality as it really is and to mobilise the appropriate
response. Regarding organisational learning, Senge (2000, cited by Pereira, 2002) defines
that it is a continuous process of detecting and correcting errors. Erring means learning,
involving self-criticism, risk assessment, tolerance to failure, and course correction, until
102 G.A. Silvente et al.

reaching the goals. It is the ability of organisations to create, acquire and transfer
knowledge and modify their behaviours to reflect these knowledge and insights. This
implements a mechanism by which workers contribute to the company’s performance by
applying their knowledge and skills to solve problems and to innovate constantly. It
creates the organisation that learns and that generates knowledge.
Zangiski et al. (2009) point out that organisational learning refers to the effective
processing, interpretation and response of information internal and external to the
organisation, and the main discussion is related to which forms of change are associated
with learning. Complementarily, the social perspective tries to study how people attribute
meaning to their work experiences, and these experiences can be from explicit sources,
such as financial or tacit information, by perception or ‘sensitivity’; therefore, according
to this view, learning originates from social relations.
The effectiveness of organisational learning and the generation of knowledge is
determinant for the formation of organisational competencies.
In this way, the interaction between organisational knowledge, organisational
competencies and organisational learning is represented by the different organisational
and management processes, insofar as they mobilise the organisational knowledge base
through organisational competencies; and also execute performance management that can
be a result of organisational learning.
It is also clear the need to develop organisational spaces for the socialisation and
dissemination of knowledge, which would characterise a space for learning and
participatory management. The organisational structures, as far as the definition of
vertical and lateral coordination mechanisms are concerned, at the levels of organisation
of units or work, should allow collaboration and the development of autonomy.

2.1.4 Wage disparities between CEOs of TMTs

Remuneration is a reward given in return for a service or favour. In general, salaries in
organisations are paid according to the importance of the position held, the degree of
specialisation required, the responsibilities and especially the supply and demand of
specific labour for that function in the market. Thus, it is very natural that some tasks are
better paid than others, taking into account the level of competence required for their
execution. And even more that managerial functions receive a larger sum, plus more
benefits than the operational functions. With the advancement of the information age and
the arrival of globalisation, in the current scenario there is competition for all parties
involved in the working relationship. Employees need to seek qualification, good training
and experiences that make them attractive to companies, while the latter have the role of
offering good remuneration, capable of retaining employees in the organisation,
preserving their intellectual capital and remaining competitive to competing companies.
Each company has its remuneration policy established and these must meet the
expectations of its employees, allowing them to feel motivated to grow in the
organisation and thus play their role in the best possible manner. In this way it is
necessary to find the balance between the interests of the collaborator and the
organisation, and also generate a concrete return for both parties (Silva et al., 2015).
For Henderson and Fredrickson (2014) the need for coordinated decision-making
takes into account the wage gap between the CEO of a company and its other top
executives. A behavioural view suggests that because of greater pay equity, it fosters
 Top management teams 103

collaboration, a greater need for coordination encourages small pay gaps, and the
combination of increased needs and lower gaps increases the company’s performance. In
this context one can cite two theories: the first is the theory of relative deprivation where
individuals compare their salary with that of people in the larger organisational ranks.
Relative deprivation is particularly relevant to the CEO’s pay gap for two reasons.
Firstly, it involves bottom-up comparisons between lower-level employees and their
superiors. Secondly, deprivation involves comparisons of results with little consideration
for differences in inputs such as effort, ability, or skills. Large wage differences increase
the overall effort of subordinates, but they do so by promoting self-reliant efforts at the
expense of cooperatives and also increase the possibility of political sabotage. Companies
with the greatest coordination needs will display small CEO’s pay gaps and the
combination of increased coordination needs and smaller gaps will increase the
company’s performance.
The second theory is that of the tournament that was developed to explain the large,
typically observed gaps between CEO’s salaries and executive’s pay directly below them.
This theory defines that when monitoring is reliable and cheap, the optimal effort is
obtained by paying agents based on their marginal products. The promotion options are
also direct because the directors can simply compare the marginal contributions of the
competitors. In general, the tournament theory states that as monitoring difficulties
increase, the CEO’s larger payment gaps reduce the need for costly supervision and
provide strong incentives that better align the interests of key players.

2.1.5 Effect of TMT demographic lines faults

With respect to the effects of the demographic faults of the TMT, a synthesis of the
theories highlighted by (Serra et al., 2014) is presented below, where the view of some
scholars of the subject is listed.
Table 1 Contributions on the effect of demographic lines failures

Authors Year Contributions

Bantel and Jackson 1989 They have tested the level of cognitive
resources and demographic characteristics of
the CEO and TMT, showing that cognitive
resources in the decision-making process and
the diversity of views are important for
innovation.
Smith et al. 1994 They tested three alternative models to assess
the effects of demographics and TMT
relationship processes on organisational
performance; in a model only the demography
influences; the second is influenced mainly by
the process; in the third model, intervenient,
are the demographic characteristics
influencing the process. The results showed
that the process has a direct effect on
performance, although demography may have
some direct and indirect impacts.
Source: Adapted from Serra et al. (2014)
104 G.A. Silvente et al.

Table 1 Contributions on the effect of demographic lines failures (continued)

Authors Year Contributions

Wiersema and Bantel 1992 They studied TMT demographics focusing on
the relationship between TMT’s
demographics and corporate strategic change
as measured by Fortune 500’s largest
diversification. In their study, they concluded
that TMTs with a greater propensity to change
are characterised by lower average age,
shorter organisational tenure, higher
education, greater heterogeneity of
educational specialisation, and greater
academic training in science.
Michel and Hambrick 1992 They studied the relationship between the
diversification posture of the companies and
the integration between the business units
from TMT. The authors concluded that the
greater the need for interdependence imposed
by the company’s diversification strategy, the
greater the need for TMT to operate on a
broad basis
Einsenhardt and Bourgeois 1988 They discussed how political behaviour can
affect CEO strategic decision-making
processes in a dynamic marketplace. They
presented a theoretical proposal linking
power, political behaviour and performance.
They concluded that political behaviour
comes from the centralisation of power and
that autocratic CEOs engage in politics and
engender the same behaviour in their
subordinates. They also concluded that
political behaviour is organised in stable
coalitions based on demographic
characteristics and that this behaviour is
usually associated with a bad performance.
Source: Adapted from Serra et al. (2014)
Thus, Table 1 shows the main contributions related to the effects of the demographic
lines of the TMTs, where it was evidenced that the demography in the TMT related to the
attributions influence the organisational performance of the entity. Following is the
methodology and main results of the research.

3 Methods

According to Guedes and Borschiver (2005), the bibliometric research allows to map and
generate different indicators of information and knowledge treatment and management,
which in a way minimises the subjectivity inherent in indexing and retrieving
information, producing knowledge in a particular area of studies. According to Ferreira
et al. (2014), bibliometric studies can use various techniques. These are based on citation
and co-citation analyses to assess the scientific relevance and influence. Citation analysis
is based on the number of times the work is cited in other works.
 Top management teams 105

The methodology used in this article is characterised as bibliometric and the data
were collected in the international database of Web of Science, since it is considered a
broad base of publications, not needing access to other databases since most of the
articles are repeated. The data were collected as follows, in May 2016:
1 It was selected as a keyword ‘TMT’, in the ‘topic’, it was validated by two experts in
the area as being the most representative.
2 The selected period comprised the years 2005 to 2015 (inclusive).
3 For the evolutionary analysis of the theme, the years 2013, 2014 and 2015 were used
to reflect the current trend of the theme, according to experts in the field.
The search began with the appearance of 558 records, this one was refined and other
areas of knowledge that are not from the business and management were excluded.
After refinement, there were then 354 articles, of which 316 belong to the main
collection of WoS, these were selected and inserted in the Bibexcel software. Then, an
exploratory factorial analysis was performed using SPSS software, where five factors
around which the authors were grouped, were identified through the correlation between
the co-citations, which are presented in the results. This first part had the unique intention
of analytically verifying the composition of the citations. Continuing the analyses, the
readings of the abstracts were started aiming to relate the main classical and current
authors that research TMT in order to raise the main evolutionary approaches on the
subject.

Figure 2 Research design

Source: Elaborated by the authors

Figure 2 shows the research steps and the procedures performed to meet the objectives
outlined here.
 106

Table 2

Factor 1 Factor 2 Factor 3 Factor 4 Factor 5

Kor (2003) 0.751 Hambrick (1996) 0.696 Lau (2005) 0.608 Henderson (2001) 0.590 March (1991) 0.614
Carpenter (2002) 0.746 Hambrick (1984) 0.655 Lau (1998) 0.581 Lazear (1981) 0.518
G.A. Silvente et al.

Murray (1989) 0.745 Kor (2006) 0.631

Hitt (1991) 0.730 Tihanyi (2000) 0.595
Hambrick (1994) 0.727 Hambrick (2007) 0.583
Jackson (1992) 0.720 Haynes (2010) 0.565
Carpenter (2004) 0.685
Carpenter (2001) 0.652
Smith (1994) 0.633
Cannella (2008) 0.620
Aiken (1991) 0.612
Neter (1996) 0.588
Finkelstein (1990) 0.569
Identification of factors (see online version for colours)

Bantel (1989) 0.568

Milliken (1996) 0.564
Podsakoff (2003) 0.509
Source: Research data (2016)
 Top management teams 107

4 Result analysis

The results of the exploratory factor analysis resulting from the processing of the citation
matrix of the selected articles are presented in this topic. It was necessary to name the
factors of the classical or seminal authors according to their conceptual approaches, and
later the abstracts of 150 of the 316 articles were analysed to identify evolutionary
aspects, considering the publications of 2013, 2014 and 2015 for portraying the most
current aspects of the theme. The procedures adopted in the AFE followed the order
recommended in the literature, namely: KMO analysis (above 0.5); KMO of each item in
the anti-image matrix (above 0.5); exclusion of items with commonality below 0.5;
exclusion of items with loads in only one factor below 0.5; exclusion of items with a
higher load on a factor other than the original; and exclusion of the remaining items from
a reliability factor (Cronbach’s alpha) below 0.6. The sample is considered adequate
since (KMO = 0.675, Bartlett p < 0.001).

4.1 Appointment of factors

As it can be seen in Table 2, 27 authors remained grouped into five factors of the rotated
component matrix. These were more cited and are considered the classical authors of the
theme.
The next step was to name the factors, thus identifying: ‘Factor 1: TMT
competencies; Factor 2: characteristics of top management; Factor 3: effect of the
demographic lines failures; Factor 4: salary disparities between CEOs; and Factor 5:
organisational learning.’

4.2 Main approaches of classical and current authors

Table 3 shows the relationship between the approaches of the classical or seminal authors
and the current authors who research corresponding themes.
It can be seen in the articles that were part of the Factor 1, called ‘TMT competencies’,
that the approaches relate to:
1 Corporate risks: every organisation is subject to risks, both internal and external, i.e.,
are subject to events that can influence, positively or negatively, the conduct of the
business and/or its results, such as the CEO’s political orientation, the gender of the
individual, performance feedback and CEO’s values.
2 Ambidexterity: an ambidextrous company seeks to equate its actions to achieve the
harmony between what needs to be done and what can be done, such as the search
for contradictory innovations, the combination of the characteristics of the CEO with
the characteristics of TMT, among others.
3 Communication: establishment of appropriate means of communication between
CEO and TMT, interference of share price informational in performance
compensation (PPS) of chief executive compensation.
4 Adaptability when changing group members.
108 G.A. Silvente et al.

5 Professional experience: influence of the international career of CEOs, family-

business owners seek to integrate non-family CEOs with non-family business
professional experience, in order to enrich the family enterprise resource pool,
childhood experiences (social class) in the training of executives influence their
strategic choices.
6 Subjectivism present in decision-making processes.
Table 3 Approaches of classical and current authors (see online version for colours)

Factor Authors/year – seminal Authors/year – actual (2005 a 2015)

1 Competencies Kor (2003), Carpenter (2002), Christensen et al. (2015), Nieboer (2015),
of top Murray (1989), Hitt and Tyler Castañeda and Cauzo-Bottala (2015), Krotov
management (1991), Hambrick (1994), Jackson (2015), Paroutis et al. (2015), Firth et al.
team (1992), Carpenter and Fredrickson (2014), Crossland et al. (2014), Vera et al.
(2001), Carpenter et al. (2004), (2014), Lim and McCann (2014), Mousa
Smith et al. (1994), Cannella et al. et al. (2013), Cui et al. (2013) and Le et al.
(2008), Aiken and West (1991), (2013)
Neter et al. (1996), Finkelstein
and Hambrick (1990), Bantel and
Jackson (1989), Milliken and
Martins (1996), and Podsakoff
et al. (2003)
2 Features of top Hambrick and Mason (1984), Kish-Gephart and Campbell (2015), Wang
managers Hambrick (2015), Diaz-Fernandez et al. (2015), Greve
et al. (1996), Hambrick (2007), et al. (2015), Agnihotri and Bhattacharya
Haynes and Hillman (2010), Kor (2015), Mahoney and Kor (2015), Healey
(2006) and Tihanyi et al. (2000) et al. 2015, Robertson et al. (2015), Engelen
et al. (2015), Hambrick et al. (2015), Mousa
et al. (2015), Rivas and Londono-Correa
(2015), Colombelli (2015), Xueli et al.
(2015), Gao and Hafsi (2015), Kim and Kim
(2015), Ferrero-Ferrero et al. (2015), Li et al.
(2015), Doms and Knyphausen-Aufseß
(2014), Chen et al. (2015a), van Veen et al.
(2014), Ou et al. (2014), Sanchez-Marin and
Samuel Baixauli-Soler (2014), Yang and
Wang (2014), Chen (2014), Nielsen and
Nielsen (2013) and Furr et al. (2012)
3 Effect of Lau and Murnighan (1998, 2005) Ndofor et al. (2015), Wang et al. (2015),
demographic Cooper et al. (2014) and Hutzschenreuter and
lines failures Horstkotte (2013)
4 Salary Henderson and Fredrickson Hart et al. (2015), Sanchez-Marin and
disparities (2001) and Lazear and Rosen Samuel Baixauli-Soler (2014), Ridge et al.
among CEOs (1981) (2015) and Qingkui et al. (2015)
5 Organisational March 1991 Mackay and Burt (2014), Costanzo and Di
learning Domenico (2015), Heavey and Simsek
(2015), Shah (2015), Barrick et al. (2015),
Mathooko and Ogutu (2015), Nadolska and
Barkema (2014), Lomi et al. (2013), Feng
et al. (2014), Hutzschenreuter and
Kleindienst (2013), Mousa et al. (2014),
Germann et al. (2013), Li (2013b),
Strutzenberger and Ambos (2014) and
Ganotakis et al. (2013)
Source: Research data (2016)
 Top management teams 109

As for Factor 2, ‘top manager’s characteristics’, we can see a significant number of

current authors who continued to research on the subject, specifically in the periods of
2013 to 2015. In this approach important scientific investigations were performed, such
as: effects of the prestige characteristics of TMTs in the formation of international
strategic alliances, diversity in human capital and the performance of TMT.
Factor 3 is characterised by the theme ‘effects of line failures or demographics’, in
which it can be highlighted how the diversity in the demographic composition of TMT is
related to the quality of information and also to the difficulty of consensus on them.
Factor 4, ‘salary disparities among CEOs’ was the subject of two classic articles and
aroused interest in the most recent research. This approach addressed the relationship
between TMT wage dispersion and company performance, citing the moderating role of
organisational governance in this process as well as the factors that increase or inhibit this
relationship.
In factor 5, ‘organisational learning’, there was only one work in 1991, however,
during the analysed period there was an increase in studies about this theme. Several
approaches have been highlighted in this factor, such as the analysis of organisational
practices and human resources management, Porter’s five competitive forces (PFCF) as
factors that lead to the choice of strategy, theory and hypotheses about how the
management team of a company learns from the acquisition experience, because,
consequently, the composition of the team is crucial, and how it affects the frequency of
acquisition and its success, among others.

4.3 Evolutionary analysis of the theme

Regarding the evolutionary analysis of the abstracts of the 150 articles (from 2013 to
2015), it is presented in Table 4 and shows the evolutionary trends of research in this
area.
It is perceived that in the evolutionary approach there is a strong tendency in the
studies of topics on the TMTs and family companies, the influences of the TMT and the
context of the insertion of women in the high-level team, as well as the remuneration of
top managers.
About ‘TMT conflicts’ it is emphasised how the CEO’s types of paternalistic
leadership affect TMT, and in this sense the team’s conflicts function as a mediator in the
relationship between the CEO and the effectiveness of his decisions. Another important
approach is how the diversity of TMT members can lead to conflicts that disrupt team
processes and hamper their performance. Following the studies, it was also identified
how (cognitive and affective) conflicts became important variables to better understand
the mixed results on the relation between TMT functional diversity and organisational
innovation.
The evolutionary factor ‘family business’ was another focus of researches developed
by the scholars. In this sense, we have identified studies on the association between
family capacities combined with the character and demographic characteristics of TMT,
particularly in relation to how the diversity of the team can influence the decision
making. We also explored the effects of family involvement in the performance of small
and medium-sized enterprises, as well as the family business performance format when
TMT is formed by both family members and non-family members.
110 G.A. Silvente et al.

Table 4 Evolutionary approaches of current authors (see online version for colours)

Evolutionary
Current authors – 2005 a 2015
approach
Conflicts of top Chen et al. (2015b), Few and Joshi (2013), Sciascia et al. (2013), Qian
management teams et al. (2013), Zimmermann et al. (2015), Simsek et al. (2015), Li
(2013a)
Family companies Dolz et al. (2015), Massis et al. (2015), (Francioni et al. (2015),
Cooper et al. (2014), Chen et al. (2014), Hiebl (2014), Kraiczy et al.
(2014), Segaro et al. (2014), Francesco and Massimo (2014), Lin
(2014) and Basco (2013)
Gender diversity in the Baixauli-Soler et al. (2015), Parola et al. (2015), Bao et al. (2014) and
top management team Dezso and Ross (2011)
Remuneration of top Walters e tal. (2015), Sudip and Iskandar-Datta (2015), Hou et al.
managers (2013) and Lin and Cheng (2013)
Influences of the top Toivonen and Toivonen (2014), Wagner and Kemmerling (2014),
management team Dhaouadi (2014), Chen (2014), Mihalache et al. (2014), (Messersmith
et al. (2014), Buyl et al. (2014), Lu et al. (2014), Lee et al. (2014),
Piaskowska and Trojanowski (2014), Kaczmarek and Ruigrok (2013),
Wei and Wu (2013), Burkert and Lueg (2013), Fernández-Mesa et al.
(2013) and Hsu et al. (2013)
Organisational Burkert and Lueg (2013), Wry et al. (2013), Guadalupe et al. (2014),
structures Sheehan et al. (2014), Shirokova et al. (2013) and Crilly and Sloan
(2014)
External influences on Atinc and Ocal (2014), Shepherd and Rudd (2014), Schmid and Dauth
the top management (2014), Orens and Reheul (2013), Heyden et al. (2013) and Sahaym
team and Nam (2013)
Source: Research data (2016)
Regarding ‘gender diversity in TMT’ it has been shown that the gender diversity of TMT
generates a positive effect on the process prior to performance, but contradictorily causes
maladies related to the integration of results. Another point studied concerns the
influence of women’s participation in the company, as it creates risks in lawsuits.
Regarding Factor 9, ‘compensation of top managers’, it focused on investigating the
relationship between the CEO’s compensation and his participation in international joint
ventures. It was also analysed how the difference between the compensation of CEO and
TMT affects the performance of the company. The focus of Factor 10, ‘influences of
TMT’ addressed the relationships and identification of changes in organisational projects
brought about by CEO’s influence. Regarding Factor 11, ‘organisational structures’, the
link between the entity structure and the top management work division was discussed. It
also investigates the reasons that result in success or failure of human resource
management in relation to company performance. And the last evolutionary factor
identified, ‘external influences in the TMT’, deals mainly with how the stock market
behaves in the face of the appointment of an international top manager.
In the face of the whole discussion about the classic and evolutionary approaches to
TMT, it can be seen that the tendency of researches is always to measure the performance
achieved by companies.
 Top management teams 111

4.4 Analysis of the characteristics of publications

Finally, it is important to make some analyses on the characteristics of the main
publications that addressed the topic TMTs in the period 2005 to 2015.

Figure 3 Articles published per year (see online version for colours)

Source: Research data (2016)

It is noticed that there was a significant increase in the number of publications since
2011, with emphasis on the years 2014 and 2015 with almost 50 citations per year.

Figure 4 Citations per year (see online version for colours)

Source: Research data (2016)

112 G.A. Silvente et al.

It is also important to point out that the citations of the classic or seminal authors on the
subject have gained greater scope as of 2014. There is still an increasing evolution of the
number of citations.

Figure 5 Main journals (see online version for colours)

2005 to 2015

Source: Research data (2017)

Finally, the main journals in which the articles that were studied in this paper were
published are shown in Figure 5. The 316 articles in the WOS main collection were
drawn from 96 journals, of which only 16 were selected for the drawing the graph, since
they contained the largest number of articles published, being considered from five
articles, which totalled 173 publications. The rest, 143 articles were published in another
80 different journals, with an average of 1.8 articles per journal.

5 Discussions and main implications

Among the main conclusions that can be reached is that TMT is a growing subject, which
can be verified from the increasing number of the citations of the works of the area. It is
also evident that the journals that most count with articles of the area are periodicals
consecrated in the studies of general administration (Figure 5) and, especially, in decision
making.
 Top management teams 113

From the data analysed and classified in five major factors, it is important to highlight
that understanding the competencies and characteristics of high-level managers is the
point that generates more interest among researchers on the subject (both the seminal
aspect and the studies performed more recently). This leads us to believe that there is a
need to understand the behavioural differences that differ from senior managers to those
of operational and tactical level. There seems to be a perception that these managers have
different behavioural characteristics and skills and that once explicit and understood in
depth, other managers could be oriented towards these characteristics. Thus, for TMT
studies, it seems that the characteristics of senior executives are relevant variables for
understanding the performance, decision making and strategic orientations of
organisations.
The conflict between senior managers for decision-making also appears as a major
feature. However, although there are fewer seminal works in this direction, there are
recent studies trying to understand these conflicts. This is likely to be explained by the
increasing need for professionalization and establishment of councils, which makes
conflicts among high-level members become more recurrent and attract more attention
from researchers. It is understandable that they seek to understand origins and
consequences of high-level conflicts that emerge, which also has a human aspect attached
to their studies.
Factors 4 and 5 that were more modest in seminal works gained weight in more
recent studies. It is highlighted that the human and behavioural factors linked to learning
gain much relevance, and learning is the factor that proportionally developed the most in
the area. It is possible to perceive that an executive is capable of gaining technical and
social knowledge throughout his professional career, which interferes directly with the
way decisions are made. It is emphasised that one cannot leave aside the understanding of
the human and personal side of the senior manager when one wants to study TMT and
how decisions are made in the organisation. It seems, therefore, that academic studies
have recently gained more prominence, which is perhaps something related to the
understanding that high-level personal’s characteristics and behaviours are decisive in
understanding organisational decision-making. This probably points to a direction in
which one has sought to understand how decisions are made given the characteristics of
the higher echelons. The perspective which understands that decision-making depends on
the human and personal elements of top management becomes relevant. Thus, there is no
dominance of the idea that there is a formal, rational and fully structured planning that
fully supports decision making. There is a tendency for the human aspect of decision-
making to be increasingly present and relevant in TMT studies.

6 Final considerations

This research was based on a review of the literature about the TMT concepts, from
which it was possible to highlight the representativeness of TMT in the organisation’s
strategic decisions. Based on this finding, the objective was to identify the main
characteristics of TMT works as well as to present the main evolutionary approaches on
the subject. This survey was performed through a bibliometric study using data collected
in the international Web of Science database. After data processing and analysis, the
main contribution that the present study brings is the identification of five factors, named
114 G.A. Silvente et al.

according to their classic or seminal approaches that represent the main conceptual
currents about TMT and seven other approaches considered evolutionary because they
are not part of the works of the seminal authors, which highlight the paths and changes
that have occurred in organisations. From this categorisation, a new way of organising
the literature on the theme is proposed.
In conclusion, it can be affirmed that this article contributed to the understanding
about the main theories and approaches on TMT as well as its evolution in following up
the growth and needs of the organisations. Among the evolutionary approaches of the
authors who continue to research on the subject, it is highlighted the interest in TMT
context in family companies, gender diversity in the team and especially the Internal and
External Influences of the TMT in the enterprise. Future research can be constructive by
looking at the annual follow-up of the evolution of researches on TMT. It is understood
to be relevant, as well, future discussions on the results achieved by companies that have
as leader of TMT women compared to performance obtained by other companies
managed by men. The importance of gender research is necessary in view of the
increasing participation of women in the strategic decisions of companies.
As managerial implications, it can be stated that the competencies and characteristics
of the managers of the top teams, which represent the majority of the studies of the area
and form the two main factors, are elements of attention. In other words, from these data,
it can be stated that possible initiatives for training and formal education of these
managers tend to focus on discussing their skills and characteristics. It is important then
that these initiatives are made on the basis of relevance studies of the area rather than
eventual behavioural programs without scientific support. The present study then offers a
robust theoretical reading and support proposal (see Table 3), from which educators can
develop subject matter syllabus in executive education programs.
As a limitation of the present study, it should be considered that bibliometric studies
focus on collections performed in specific databases (in this case, the Web of Science)
and that they tend to highlight older studies that obtained more citations as a result of
being pioneers and having more time available for citations (which was tried to overcome
with the recent analysis of the publications). In other words, more recent articles, with
less time available to the academic community, can hardly get many relevant citations
and broader dissemination among researchers like older works.
Based on this, it is suggested as future studies that this same analysis can be
conducted in other databases in order to identify whether there are factors that can
emerge from studies published in journals not available in the Web of Science. For this
purpose, broader bases such as Scopus, for example, are suggested. In addition, it is
suggested that pairing studies should also be performed so that the most recent studies
may also be among the most relevant in the TMT area.

References
Agnihotri, A. and Bhattacharya, S. (2015) ‘Determinants of export intensity in emerging markets:
an upper echelon perspective’, Journal of World Business, Vol. 50, No. 4, pp.687–695 [online]
[Link]
Aiken, L.S. and West, S.G. (1991) Multiple Regression: Testing and Interpreting Interactions,
Sage, Newbury Park.
 Top management teams 115

Atinc, G. and Ocal, Y. (2014) ‘The moderating effect of organizational environment on post-IPO
corporate governance changes and firm performance relationship, Journal of Leadership &
Organizational Studies, Vol. 21, No. 3, pp.286–298 [online] [Link]
1548051814529824.
Baixauli-Soler, J.S., Belda-Ruiz, M. and Sanchez-Marin, G. (2015) ‘Executive stock options,
gender diversity in the top management team, and firm risk taking’, Journal of Business
Research, Vol. 68, No. 2, pp.451–463 [online] [Link]
Bantel, K.A. and Jackson, S.E. (1989) ‘Top management and innovations in banking: does the
composition of the top team make a difference?’, Strategic Management Journal, Vol. 10,
No. 51, pp.107–124 [online] [Link]
Bao, S., Fainshmidt, S., Nair, A. and Vracheva, V. (2014) ‘Women in upper echelons of
management, tenure and legal risk’, British Journal of Management, Vol. 25, No. 2,
pp.388–405 [online] [Link]
Barney, J. (1991) ‘Firm resources and sustained competitive advantage’ Journal of Management
[online] [Link]
Barrick, M.R., Thurgood, G.R., Smith, T.A. and Courtright, T.A. (2015) ‘Collective organizational
engagement: linking motivational antecedents, strategic implementation, and firm
performance’, Academy of Management Journal, Vol. 58, No. 11, pp.111–135 [online]
[Link]
Basco, R. (2013) ‘The family’s effect on family firm performance: a model testing the demographic
and essence approaches’, Journal of Family Business Strategy, Vol. 4, No. 1, pp.42–66
[online] [Link]
Brandão, H.P. and Guimarães, T.D.A. (2001) Gestão de competências e gestao de desempenho:
tecnologias distintas ou instrumentos de um mesmo construto? Revista de
Administração de Empresas, Vol. 41, No. 1, pp.8–15 [online] [Link]
75902001000100002.
Burkert, M. and Lueg, R. (2013) ‘Differences in the sophistication of value-based management –
the role of top executives’, Management Accounting Research, Vol. 24, No. 1, pp.3–22
[online] [Link]
Buyl, T., Boone, C. and Hendriks, W. (2014) ‘Top management team members’ decision influence
and cooperative behaviour: an empirical study in the information technology industry’, British
Journal of Management, Vol. 25, No. 2, pp.285–304 [online] [Link]
8551.12004.
Cannella, A.A., Park, J.H. and Lee, H.U. (2008) ‘Top management team functional background
diversity and firm performance: examining the roles of team member colocation and
environmental uncertainty’, Academy of Management Journal, Vol. 51, No. 4, pp.768–784
[online] [Link]
Carpenter, M.A. (2002) ‘Notes and commentaries the implications of strategy and social context for
the relationship between top team heterogeneity management and firm’, Strategic
Management Journal, Vol. 23, No. 3, pp.275–284 [online] [Link]
Carpenter, M.A. and Fredrickson, J.W. (2001) ‘Top management teams, global strategic posture,
and the moderating role of uncertainty’, The Academy of Management Journal, Vol. 44, No. 3,
pp.533–545 [online] [Link]
Carpenter, M.A., Geletkanycz, M.A. and Sanders, W.G. (2004) ‘Upper echelons research revisited:
antecedents, elements, and consequences of top management team composition’, Journal of
Management, Vol. 30, No. 6, pp.749–778 [online] [Link]
Castañeda, M.D.C. and Cauzo-Bottala, L. (2015) ‘Consequences of CEO change: long term effects
on top management team and firm performance’, Spanish Journal of Finance and Accounting,
Vol. 44, No. 1, pp.72–96 [online] [Link]
116 G.A. Silvente et al.

Chen, H.L. (2014) ‘Board capital, CEO power and R&D investment in electronics firms’,
Corporate Governance (Oxford), Vol. 22, No. 5, pp.422–436 [online] [Link]
corg.12076.
Chen, H.L., Hsu, W.T. and Chang, C.Y. (2014) ‘Family ownership, institutional ownership, and
internationalization of SMEs’, Journal of Small Business Management, Vol. 52, No. 4,
pp.771–789 [online] [Link]
Chen, M.H., Chang, Y.Y. and Chang, Y.C. (2015a) ‘Entrepreneurial orientation, social
networks, and creative performance: middle managers as corporate entrepreneurs’, Creativity
and Innovation Management, Vol. 24, No. 3, pp.493–507 [online] [Link]
10.1111/caim.12108.
Chen, G., Luo, S., Tang, Y. and Tong, J.Y. (2015b) ‘Passing probation: earnings management by
interim CEOs and its effect on their promotion prospects’, Academy of Management Journal,
Vol. 58, No. 5, pp.1389–1418 [online] [Link]
Christensen, D.M., Dhaliwal, D.S., Boivie, S. and Graffin, S.D. (2015) ‘Top management
conservatism and corporate risk strategies: evidence from managers’ personal political
orientation and corporate tax avoidance’, Strategic Management Journal, Vol. 36, No. 12,
pp.1918–1938 [online] [Link]
Colombelli, A. (2015) ‘Top management team characteristics and firm growth’, International
Journal of Entrepreneurial Behavior & Research, Vol. 21, No. 1, pp.107–127 [online]
[Link]
Cooper, D., Patel, P.C. and Thatcher, S.M. (2014) ‘It depends: environmental context and the
effects of faultlines on top management team performance’, Organization Science, June,
Vol. 25, pp.633–652 [online] [Link]
Costanzo, L.A. and Di Domenico, M. (2015) ‘A multi-level dialectical-paradox lens for top
management team strategic decision-making in a corporate venture’, British Journal of
Management, Vol. 26, No. 3, pp.484–506 [online] [Link]
Crilly, D. and Sloan, P. (2014) ‘Autonomy or control? Organizational architecture and corporate
attention to stakeholders’, Organization Science, Vol. 25, No. 2, pp.339–355 [online]
[Link]
Crossland, C., Zyung, J., Hiller, N.J. and Hambrick, D.C. (2014) ‘CEO career variety: effects on
firm-level strategic and social novelty’, Strategic Management Journal, Vol. 57, No. 3,
pp.652–674 [online] [Link]
Cui, L., Li, Y. and Li, Z. (2013) ‘Experiential drivers of foreign direct investment by late-comer
Asian firms: The Chinese evidence’, Journal of Business Research, Vol. 66, No. 12,
pp.2451–2459 [online] [Link]
Dezso, C.L. and Ross, D.G. (2011) ‘Does female representation in top management improve firm
performance? A panel data investigation’, Strategic Management Journal, Vol. 33, No. 9,
pp.1072–1089 [online] [Link]
Dhaouadi, K. (2014) ‘The influence of top management team traits on corporate financial
performance in the US’, Canadian Journal of Administrative Sciences, Vol. 31, No. 3,
pp.200–213 [online] [Link]
Diaz-Fernandez, M.C., Gonzalez-Rodriguez, M.R. and Simonetti, B. (2015) ‘Top management
team’s intellectual capital and firm performance’, European Management Journal, Vol. 33,
No. 5, pp.322–331 [online] [Link]
Dolz, C., Iborra, M. and Safón, V. (2015) ‘Empresa familiar, equipos directivos, diversidad y
ambidiestría en las pymes’, RAE-Revista de Administração de Empresas | FGV/EAESP,
Vol. 55, pp.673–687 [online] [Link]
Doms, M. and Knyphausen-Aufseß, D. (2014) ‘Structure and characteristics of top management
teams as antecedents of outside executive appointments: a three-country study’, International
Journal of Human Resource Management, Vol. 25, No. 22, pp.3060–2085.
 Top management teams 117

Engelen, A., Schmidt, S. and Buchsteiner, M. (2015) ‘The simultaneous influence of national
culture and market turbulence on entrepreneurial orientation: a nine-country study’, Journal of
International Management, Vol. 21, No. 1, pp.18–30 [online] [Link]
[Link].2014.12.002.
Feng, K., Shen, Q. and Zhao, S. (2014) ‘Institutional influence, cognition and competence of top
managers and innovative firms the case of Chinese power equipment firms’, Chinese
Management Studies, Vol. 8, Nos. 1, SI, pp.41–65 [online] [Link]
2013-0125.
Fernández-Mesa, A., Iborra, M. and Safón, V. (2013) ‘CEO-TMT interaction: do tenure and age
affect ambidexterity dynamism?’, European Journal of International Management, Vol. 7,
No. 1, pp.31–55 [online] https//[Link]/ 10.1504/EJIM.2013.052098.
Ferreira, M.P., Storopoli, J.E. and Serra, F.R. (2014) ‘Two decades of research on strategic
alliances: analysis of citations, Co-citations and Themes Researched, in Anpad, pp.109–133
[online] [Link]
Ferrero-Ferrero, I., Muñoz-Torres, M.J. and Fernández-Izquierdo, M.A. (2015) ‘Changes
in top management team strategies caused by the external financial environment’, Leadership
& Organization Development Journal, Vol. 36, No. 7, pp.849–866 [online]
[Link]
Finkelstein, S. and Hambrick, D.C. (1990) ‘Top-management-team tenure and organizational
outcomes: the moderating role of managerial discretion’, Administrative Science Quarterly,
Vol. 35, No. 3, pp.484–503 [online] [Link]
Firth, M., Wong, S.M.L. and Yang, Y. (2014) ‘The double-edged sword of CEO/chairperson
duality in corporatized state-owned firms: evidence from top management turnover
in China’, Journal of Management & Governance, Vol. 18, No. 1, pp.207–244 [online]
[Link]
Francioni, B., Musso, F. and Cioppi, M. (2015) ‘Decision-maker characteristics and international
decisions for SMEs’, Management Decision, Vol. 53, No. 10, pp.2226–2249 [online]
[Link]
Furr, N.R., Cavarretta, F. and Garg, S. (2012) ‘Who changes course? The role of domain
knowledge and novel framing in making technology changes’, Strategic Entrepreneurship
Journal, Vol. 6, No. 3, pp.236–256 [online] [Link] 10.1002/sej.1137.
Ganotakis, P., Hsieh, W. and Love, J.H. (2013) ‘Information systems, inter-functional collaboration
and innovation in Taiwanese high-tech manufacturing firms’, Production Planning & Control,
Vol. 24, Nos. 8–9, pp.837–850 [online] [Link]
Gao, Y. and Hafsi, T. (2015) ‘R&D spending among Chinese SMEs: the role of business owners’
characteristics’, Management Decision, Vol. 53, No. 8, pp.1714–1735 [online] [Link]
10.1108/MD-04-2014-0208.
Germann, F., Lilien, G.L. and Rangaswamy, A. (2013) ‘Performance implications of deploying
marketing analytics’, International Journal of Research in Marketing, Vol. 30, No. 2,
pp.114–128 [online] [Link]
Greve, P., Biemann, T. and Ruigrok, W. (2015) ‘Foreign executive appointments: a multilevel
examination’, Journal of World Business, Vol. 50,, No. 4, pp.674–686 [online] [Link]
10.1016/[Link].2014.10.012.
Guadalupe, M., Li, H. and Wulf, J. (2014) ‘Who lives in the c-suite organizational structure and the
division of labor in top management’, Management Science, Vol. 60, No. 4, pp.824–844
[online] [Link]
Guedes, V.L.S. and Borschiver, S. (2005) ‘Bibliometria: Uma Ferramenta Estatística Para a Gestão
Da Informação E Do Conhecimento , Em Sistemas De Informação , De Comunicação E De’,
CINFORM - Encontro Nacional de Ciência Da Informação, pp.1–18 [online]
[Link]
118 G.A. Silvente et al.

Hambrick, D.C. (1994) ‘Top management groups: a conceptual integration and reconsideration of
the ‘team’ label’, in B.M. Staw and L.L. Cummings (Eds.): Research in Organizational
Behaviour, pp.171–214, JAI Press, Greenwich.
Hambrick, D.C. (2007) ‘Upper echelons theory: an update’, Academy of Management Review,
Vol. 32, No. 2, pp.334–343 [online] [Link] 10.5465/AMR.2007.24345254.
Hambrick, D.C. and Mason, P.A. (1984) ‘Upper echelons: the organization as a reflection of its top
managers’, Academy of Management Review, Vol. 9, No. 2, pp.193–206.
Hambrick, D.C., Cho, T.S. and Chen, M.J. (1996) ‘The influence of top management team
heterogeneity on firms competitive moves’, Administrattve Science Quarterly, Vol. 41, No. 4,
pp.659–684 [online] [Link] 10.2307/2393871.
Hambrick, D.C., Humphrey, S.E. and Gupta, A. (2015) ‘Structural interdependence within top
management teams: a key moderator of upper echelons predictors’, Strategic Management
Journal, Vol. 36, No. 3, pp.449–461 [online] [Link] 10.1002/smj.2230.
Hart, T.A., David, P., Shao, F., Fox, C.J. and Westermann-Behaylo, M. (2015) ‘An examination
of the impact of executive compensation disparity on corporate social performance’,
Strategic Organization, Vol. 13, No. 3, pp.200–223 [online] [Link]
1476127015585103.
Haynes, K.T. and Hillman, A. (2010) ‘The effect of board capital and CEO power on strategic
change’, Strategic Management Journal, Vol. 31, No. 11, pp.1145–1163 [online]
[Link]
Healey, M.P., Hodgkinson, G.P., Whittington, R. and Johnson, G. (2015) ‘Off to plan or out to
lunch? Relationships between design characteristics and outcomes of strategy workshops’,
British Journal of Management, Vol. 26, No. 3, pp.507–528 [online] [Link]
1467-8551.12038.
Heavey, C. and Simsek, Z. (2015) ‘Transactive memory systems and firm performance: an upper
echelons perspective’, Organization Science, December, pp.1–19 [online] [Link]
10.1287/orsc.2015.0979.
Henderson, A.D. and Fredrickson, J.W. (2014) ‘Top management team coordination needs and test
of the CEO pay gap: a competitive economic and behavioral views’, Academy of Management
Journal, Vol. 44, No. 1, pp.96–117, [Link] 10.2307/3069339.
Heyden, M.L.M., van Doorn, S., Reimer, M., Van Den Bosch, F.a.J. and Volberda, H.W. (2013)
‘Perceived environmental dynamism, relative competitive performance, and top management
team heterogeneity: examining correlates of upper echelons’ advice-seeking’, Organization
Studies, Vol. 34, No. 9, pp.1327–1356 [online] [Link]
Hiebl, M.R.W. (2014) ‘A finance professional who understands the family: family firms’ specific
requirements for non-family chief financial officers’, Review of Managerial Science, Vol. 8,
No. 4, pp.465–494 [online] [Link]
Hitt, M.A. and Tyler, B.B. (1991). ‘Strategic decision models: integrating different
perspectives’, Strategic Management Journal, Vol. 12, No. 5, pp.327–351 [online]
[Link]
Hou, W., Li, S. and Priem, R.L. (2013) ‘How do CEOs matter? The moderating effects of CEO
compensation and tenure on equity ownership in international joint ventures’, Journal of
International Management, Vol. 19, No. 2, pp.138–151 [online] [Link]
[Link].2013.02.001.
Hsu, W.T., Chen, H.L. and Cheng, C.Y. (2013) ‘Internationalization and firm performance of
SMEs: The moderating effects of CEO attributes’, Journal of World Business, Vol. 48, No. 1,
pp.1–12 [online] [Link]
Hutzschenreuter, T. and Horstkotte, J. (2013) ‘Performance effects of international expansion
processes: the moderating role of top management team experiences’, International Business
Review, Vol. 22, No. 1, pp.259–277 [online] [Link]
 Top management teams 119

Hutzschenreuter, T. and Kleindienst, I. (2013) ‘(How) does discretion change over time? A
contribution toward a dynamic view of managerial discretion’, Scandinavian
Journal of Management, Vol. 29, No. 3, pp.264–281 [online] [Link]
[Link].2012.11.009.
Jackson, S.E. (1992) ‘Consequences of group composition for the interpersonal dynamics of
strategic issue processing’, Advances in Strategic Management, Vol. 8, pp.345–382.
Johnson, A.M. and Lederer, A.L. (2010) ‘Information & management CEO / CIO mutual
understanding, strategic alignment , and the contribution of IS to the organization’,
Information & Management, Vol. 47, No. 3, pp.138–149 [online] [Link]
[Link].2010.01.002.
Johnson, M.D., Hollenbeck, J.R., Humphrey, S.E., Ilgen, D.R., Jundt, D. and Meyer, C.J. (2006)
‘Cutthroat cooperation: asymmetrical adaptation to changes in team reward structures’,
Academy of Management Journal, Vol. 49, No. 1, pp.103–119.
Kaczmarek, S. and Ruigrok, W. (2013) ‘In at the deep end of firm internationalization: nationality
diversity on top management teams matters’, Management International Review, Vol. 53, No.
4, pp.513–534 [online] [Link]
Kim, N. and Kim, E. (2015) ‘Board capital and exploration: from a resource provisional
perspective’, Management Decision, Vol. 53, No. 9, pp.2156–2174 [online] [Link]
10.1108/MD-11-2014-0648.
Kish-Gephart, J.J. and Campbell, J.T. (2015) ‘You don’t forget your roots: the influence of CO
social class background on strategic risk taking’, Academy of Management Journal, Vol. 58,
No. 6, pp.1614–1636 [online] [Link] 10.5465/amj.2013.1204.
Kor, Y.Y. (2003) ‘Experience-based top management team competence and sustained growth’,
Institute for Operations Research and the Management Sciences, Vol. 14, No. 6, pp.707–719
[online] [Link]
Kor, Y.Y. (2006) ‘Direct and interaction effects of top management team and board compositions
on R&D investment strategy’, Strategic Management Journal, Vol. 27, No. 11, pp.1081–1099
[online] [Link]
Kraiczy, N.D., Hack, A. and Kellermanns, F.W. (2014) ‘New product portfolio performance in
family firms’, Journal of Business Research, Vol. 67, No. 6, pp.1065–1073 [online]
[Link]
Krotov, V. (2015) ‘Bridging the CIO-CEO gap: it takes two to tango’, Business Horizons, Vol. 58,
No. 3, pp.275–283 [online] [Link]
Lau, D.C. and Murnighan, J.K. (1998) ‘Demographic diversity and faultlines: the compositional
dynamics of organizational groups’, Academy of Management Review, Vol. 23, No. 2,
pp.325–340 [online] [Link]
Lau, D.C. and Murnighan, J.K. (2005) ‘Interactions within groups and subgroups: the effects of
demographic faultlines’, Academy of Management Journal, Vol. 48, No. 4, pp.645–659
[online] [Link]
Lazear, E.P. and Rosen, S. (1981) ‘Rank-order tournaments as optimum labor contracts’, Journal of
Political Economy, Vol. 89, No. 5, pp.841–864 [online] [Link] 10.1086/261010.
Le, S.A., Kroll, M.J. and Walters, B.A. (2013) ‘Outside directors’ experience, TMT firm-specific
human capital, and firm performance in entrepreneurial IPO firms’, Journal of Business
Research, Vol. 66, No. 4, pp.533–539 [online] [Link]
Lee, J., Elbashir, M.Z., Mahama, H. and Sutton, S.G. (2014) ‘Enablers of top management team
support for integrated management control systems innovations’, International Journal of
Accounting Information Systems, Vol. 15, No. 1, pp.1–25 [online] [Link]
[Link].2013.07.001.
Li, C-R. (2013a) ‘How top management team diversity fosters organizational ambidexterity: the
role of social capital among top executives’, Journal of Organizational Change Management,
Vol. 26, No. 5, pp.874–896 [online] [Link]
120 G.A. Silvente et al.

Li, D. (2013b) ‘Multilateral R&D alliances by new ventures’, Journal of Business Venturing,
Vol. 28, No. 2, pp.241–260 [online] [Link]
Li, W., Zhang, S. and Zhang, J. (2015) ‘Top management team heterogeneity, diversification, and
corporate performance: a panel smooth regression model’, Romanian Journal of Economic
Forecasting, Vol. 18, No. 1, pp.129–142.
Lim, E.N.K. and McCann, B.T. (2014) ‘Performance feedback and firm risk taking: the moderating
effects of CEO and outside director stock options’, Organization Science, Vol. 25, No. 1,
pp.262–282 [online] [Link]
Lin, W.T. and Cheng, K.Y. (2013) ‘The effect of upper echelons’ compensation on firm
internationalization’, Asia Pacific Journal of Management, Vol. 30, No. 1, pp.73–90 [online]
[Link]
Lin, W-T. (2014) ‘Founder-key leaders, group-level decision teams, and the international
expansion of business groups evidence from Taiwan’, International Marketing Review,
Vol. 31, No. 2, pp.129–154 [online] [Link]
Lomi, A., Lusher, D., Pattison, P.E. and Robins, G. (2013) ‘The focused organization of advice
relations: a study in boundary crossing’, Organization Science, Vol. 25, No. 2, pp.438–457
[online] [Link]
Lu, J., Liu, X., Filatotchev, I. and Wright, M. (2014) ‘The impact of domestic diversification and
top management teams on the international diversification of Chinese firms’, International
Business Review, Vol. 23, No. 2, pp.455–467 [online] [Link]
[Link].2013.07.002.
Mackay, D. and Burt, G. (2014) ‘Strategic learning, foresight and hyperopia’, Management
Learning, Vol. 46, No. 5, pp.546–564 [online] [Link]
Mahoney, J.T. and Kor, Y.Y. (2015) ‘Advancing the human capital perspective on value creation
by joining capabilities and governance approaches’, Academy of Management Perspectives,
Vol. 29, No. 3, pp.296–308 [online] [Link]
Massis, A.D., Kotlar, J., Campopiano, G. and Cassia, L. (2015) ‘The impact of family involvement
on SMEs’ performance: theory and evidence’, Journal of Small Business Management,
Vol. 53, No. 4, pp.924–948 [online] [Link]
Mathooko, F.M. and Ogutu, M. (2015) ‘Porter’s five competitive forces framework and other
factors that influence the choice of response strategies adopted by public universities in
Kenya’, International Journal of Educational Management, Vol. 29, No. 3, pp.334–354
[online] [Link]
Messersmith, J.G., Lee, J-Y., Guthrie, J.P. and Ji, Y-Y. (2014) ‘Turnover at the top: executive team
departures and firm performance’, Organization Science, Vol. 25, No. 3, pp.776–793 [online]
[Link]
Mihalache, O.R., Jansen, J.J.P., Van den Bosch, F.A.J. and Volberda, H.W. (2014) ‘Top
management team shared leadership and organizational ambidexterity: a moderated mediation
framework’, Strategic Entrepreneurship Journal, Vol. 8, No. 2, pp.128–148 [online]
[Link]
Milliken, F.J. and Martins, L.L. (1996) ‘Searching the common threads: understanding the multiple
effects of diversity in organizational groups’, Academy of Management Review, Vol. 21,
No. 2, pp.402–433 [online] [Link] 10.5465/AMR.1996.9605060217.
Mousa, F.T., Ritchie, W.J. and Reed, R. (2014) ‘Founder-CEO board involvement and
optimal IPO valuation’, Management Decision, Vol. 52, No. 3, pp.642–657 [online]
[Link]
Mousa, F.T., Wales, W.J. and Harper, S.R. (2015) ‘When less is more: EO’s influence upon funds
raised by young technology firms at IPO’, Journal of Business Research, Vol. 68, No. 2,
pp.306–313 [online] [Link]
Mousa, F-T., Marlin, D. and Ritchie, W.J. (2013) ‘Configurations of slack and their performance
implications: an examination of high-tech IPOs’, Management Decision, Vol. 51, No. 2,
pp.225–247 [online] [Link]
 Top management teams 121

Murray, A.I. (1989) ‘Top management group heterogeneity and firm performance’, Strategic
Management Journal, Vol. 10, No. 51, pp.125–141 [online] [Link]
10.1002/smj.4250100710.
Nadolska, A. and Barkema, H.G. (2014) ‘Good learners: how top management teams affect
the success and frequency of acquisitions’, Strategic Management Journal, Vol. 35, No. 10,
pp.1483–1507 [online] [Link]
Ndofor, H.A., Sirmon, D.G. and He, X. (2015) ‘Utilizing the firms resources: how TMT
heterogeneity and resulting faultilines affect TMT tasks’, Strategic Management Journal,
Vol. 36, No. 11, pp.1656–1674 [online] [Link]
Neter, J., Kutner, M.H., Nachtsheim, C.J. and Wasserman, W. (1996) Applied Linear Statistical
Models, 4th ed., McGraw-Hill, New York.
Nieboer, J. (2015) ‘Group member characteristics and risk taking by consensus’, Journal of
Behavioral and Experimental Economics, Vol. 57, pp.81–88 [online] [Link]
[Link].2015.05.001.
Nielsen, B.B. and Nielsen, S. (2013) ‘Top management team nationality diversity and firm
performance: a multilevel study’, Strategic Manegemnt Journal, Vol. 34, No. 3, pp.373–382
[online] [Link] 10.1002/smj.2021.
Nielsen, S. (2010) Top management team diversity: a review of theories and methodologies,
International Journal of Management Reviews [online] [Link]
2370.2009.00263.x.
Orens, R. and Reheul, A.M. (2013) ‘Do CEO demographics explain cash holdings in SMEs?’,
European Management Journal, Vol. 31, No. 6, pp.549–563 [online] [Link]
[Link].2013.01.003.
Ou, A.Y., Tsui, A.S., Kinicki, A.J., Waldman, D.A., Xiao, Z. and Song, L.J. (2014) Humble Chief
Executive Officers’ Connections to Top Management Team Integration and Middle Managers’
Responses [online] [Link]
Papadakis, V.M. and Barwise, P. (2002) ‘How much do CEOs and top managers matter in strategic
decision-making?’, British Journal of Management, Vol. 13, No. 1, pp.83–95 [online]
[Link] 10.1111/1467-8551.00224.
Parola, H.R., Ellis, K.M. and Golden, P. (2015) ‘Performance effects of top management team
gender diversity during the merger and acquisition process’, Management Decision, Vol. 53,
No. 1, pp.57–74 [online] [Link]
Paroutis, S., Franco, L.A. and Papadopoulos, T. (2015) ‘Visual interactions with strategy tools:
producing strategic knowledge in workshops’, British Journal of Management, Vol. 26, No.
S1, pp.S48–S66 [online] [Link]
Pereira, H.J. (2002) ‘Bases Conceituais de um Modelo de Gestão para Organizações Baseadas no
Conhecimento (*)’, XXII Simpósio de Gestão Da Inovação Tecnológica, (Xxii), pp.1–20
[online] [Link]
[Link].
Pereira, M.F., Garcia, J.R., Borgert, A. and Caldas, A.D.M. (2006) ‘O líder organizacional e suas
competências’, XIII SIMPEP (Simpósio de Engenharia de Produção), pp.1–11 [online]
[Link] (accessed 19th May 2016).
Piaskowska, D. and Trojanowski, G. (2014) ‘Twice as smart? The importance of managers’
formative-years’ international experience for their international orientation and foreign
acquisition decisions’, British Journal of Management, Vol. 25, No. 1, pp.40–57 [online]
[Link]
Podsakoff, P.M., MacKenzie, S.B., Lee, J-Y. and Podsakoff, N.P. (2003) ‘Common method biases
in behavioral research: a critical review of the literature and recommended remedies’, Journal
of Applied Psychology, Vol. 88, No. 5, pp.879–903 [onlive] [Link]
9010.88.5.879.
122 G.A. Silvente et al.

Qian, C., Cao, Q. and Takeuchi, R. (2013) ‘Top management team function diversity and
organizational innovation in China: the moderating effects of environment’, Strategic
Management Journal, Vol. 34, No. 1, pp.110–120 [online] [Link]
Qingkui, M., Hongfeng, W. and Taichen, L. (2015) ‘TMT pay gap, governance structure, and bank
performance’, Proceedings of the 7th International Conference on Financial Risk and
Corporate Finance Management, p.7, Henderson, Nevada United States.
Ramos, S.C. and Roglio, K.D.D. (2013) ‘Cognição da Decisão em Top Management Teams’ in
XXXVII Encontro da Enanpad, pp.1–13.
Ridge, J.W., Aime, F. and White, M.A. (2015) ‘When much more of a difference: social
comparison and tournaments in the CEO’s top team’, Strategic Management Journal, Vol. 36,
No. 4, pp.618–636 [online] [Link]
Rivas, L.M. and Londono-Correa, D. (2015) ‘Influencia de la alta gerencia: debates en el campo
académico de la estrategia’, Multidisciplinary Business Review, Vol. 8, No. 1, pp.25–41
[online] [Link] 0.13140/RG.2.1.2022.5763.
Robertson, C.J., Yaghmour, M.A. and Kawther, E.H. (2015) ‘Perceptions of international strategic
moves: Saudi Arabia versus the United States’, South African Journal of Business
Management, Vol. 46, No. 2, pp.55–63.
Sahaym, A. and Nam, D. (2013) ‘International diversification of the emerging-market enterprises: a
multi-level examination’, International Business Review, Vol. 22, No. 2, pp.421–436 [online]
[Link]
Sanchez-Marin, G. and Samuel Baixauli-Soler, J. (2014) ‘CEO reputation and top management
team compensation’, Management Decision, Vol. 52, No. 3, pp.540–558 [online]
[Link]
Schmid, S. and Dauth, T. (2014) ‘Does internationalization make a difference? Stock market
reaction to announcements of international top executive appointments’, Journal of World
Business, Vol. 49, No. 1, pp.63–77 [online] [Link]
Sciascia, S., Mazzola, P., Astrachan, J.H. and Pieper, T.M. (2013) ‘Family involvement in
the board of directors: effects on sales internationalization’, Journal of Small Business
Management, Vol. 51, No. 1, pp.83–99 [online] [Link]
627X.2012.00373.x.
Segaro, E.L., Larimo, J. and Jones, M.V. (2014) ‘Internationalisation of family small and medium
sized enterprises: the role of stewardship orientation, family commitment culture and top
management team’, International Business Review, Vol. 23, No. 2, pp.381–395 [online]
[Link]
Serra, B.P.D.C., Tomei, P.A. and Serra, F.A.R. (2014) ‘The research in top management
team strategic decision-making: evolution and intellectual basis’, Revista de Ciências
da Administração, Vol. 16, No. 40, pp.11–28 [online] [Link]
8077.2014v16n40p11.
Shah, P. (2015) ‘Kill it or keep it? The weak brand retain-or-discard decision in brand
portfolio management’, Journal of Brand Management, Vol. 22, No. 2, pp.154–172 [online]
[Link]
Sheehan, C., De Cieri, H., Greenwood, M. and Van Buren III, H.J. (2014) ‘HR professional role
tensions: perceptions and responses of the top management team’, Human Resource
Management, Vol. 53, No. 1, pp.115–130 [online] [Link] 10.1002/hrm.21574.
Shepherd, N.G. and Rudd, J.M. (2014) ‘The influence of context on the strategic decision-making
process: a review of the literature’, International Journal of Management Reviews, Vol. 16,
No. 3, pp.340–364 [online] [Link]
Shirokova, G., Veja, G. and Kozyreva, T. (2013) ‘DiPaul, Inc: transitioning in measured steps’,
Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, Vol. 38, No. 2, pp.427–444 [online] [Link]
10.1111/etap.12010.
 Top management teams 123

Silva, A.R.D., Fonseca, L.S., Reis, R.M.M. and Coutinho, K.M.B.D.S. (2015) ‘Remuneração
participativa nas organizações: uma forma de distribuição das riquezas’, in xi congresso
nacional de excelência em gestão.
Simsek, Z., Jansen, J.J.P., Minichilli, A. and Escriba-Esteve, A. (2015) ‘Strategic leadership and
leaders in entrepreneurial contexts: A nexus for innovation and impact missed?’, Journal of
Management Studies, Vol. 52, No. 4, pp.463–478 [online] [Link]
Smith K.G., Smith K.A., Olian J.D., Sims H.P., O’Bannon, D.P. and Scully, J.A. (1994) ‘Top
management team demography and process: the role of social integration and
communication’, Administrative Science Quarterly, Vol. 39, No. 3, pp.412–438 [online]
[Link]
Strutzenberger, A. and Ambos, T.C. (2014) ‘Unravelling the subsidiary initiative process: a
multilevel approach’, International Journal of Management Reviews, Vol. 16, No. 3,
pp.314–339 [online] [Link]
Tihanyi, L., Ellstrand, A.E., Daily, C.M. and Dalton, D.R. (2000) ‘Composition of the top
management team and firm international diversification’, Journal of Management, Vol. 26,
No. 6, pp.1157–1177 [online] [Link] 10.1177/014920630002600605.
Toivonen, A. and Toivonen, P.U. (2014) ‘The transformative effect of top management governance
choices on project team identity and relationship with the organization – an agency and
stewardship approach’, International Journal of Project Management, Vol. 32, No. 8,
pp.1358–1370 [online] [Link]
van Veen, K., Sahib, P.R. and Aangeenbrug, E. (2014) ‘Where do international board members
come from? Country-level antecedents of international board member selection in European
boards’, International Business Review, Vol. 23, No. 2, pp.407–417 [online]
[Link]
Vera, D., Crossan, M. and Rerup, C. (2014) ‘‘Thinking before acting’ or ‘acting before thinking’
antecedents of individual action propensity in work situations’, Journal of Management
Studies, Vol. 51, No. 4, pp.603–633 [online] [Link]
Wagner, S.M. and Kemmerling, R. (2014) ‘Supply chain management executives in corporate
upper echelons’, Journal of Purchasing and Supply Management, Vol. 20, No. 3, pp.156–166
[online] [Link]
Walters, B.A., Le, S.A. and Kroll, M. (2015) ‘Post-IPO governance and top management team rent
generation and appropriation’, Journal of Business Research, Vol. 68, No. 1, pp.47–55
[online] [Link]
Wang, J-H., Chang, C-C., Yao, S-N. and Liang, C. (2015) ‘The contribution of self-efficacy to the
relationship between personality traits and entrepreneurial intention’, Higher Education, No. 1
[online] [Link]
Wang, Y.K.M. (2015) ‘The impact of prestigious top management team on international alliance
formation: evidence from Taiwanese electronics firms’, Journal of Management &
Organization, Vol. 21, No. 6, pp.835–852 [online] [Link]
Wei, L. and Wu, L. (2013) ‘What a diverse top management team means: testing an integrated
model’, Journal of Management Studies, Vol. 50, No. 3, pp.389–412 [online]
[Link]
Wry, T., Cobb, J.A. and Aldrich, H.E. (2013) ‘More than a metaphor: assessing the historical
legacy of resource dependence and its contemporary promise as a theory of environmental
complexity’, Academy of Management Annals, Vol. 7, No. 1, pp.441–488 [online]
[Link]
Xueli, W., Lin, M. and Yanli, W. (2015) ‘The impact of TMT functional background on firm
performance: evidence from listed companies in China’s IT industry’, Nankai Business Review
International, Vol. 6, No. 3, pp.281–311 [online] [Link]
124 G.A. Silvente et al.

Yang, L. and Wang, D. (2014) ‘The impacts of top management team characteristics on
entrepreneurial strategic orientation: the moderating effects of industry environment and
corporate ownership’, Management Decision, Vol. 52, No. 2, pp.378–409 [online]
[Link]
Zangiski, M.A.D.S.G., Lima, E.P.D. and Costa, S.E.G.D. (2009) ‘Aprendizagem organizacional e
desenvolvimento de competências: uma síntese a partir da gestão do conhecimento’, Produto
& Produção, Vol. 10, No. 1, pp.54–74.
Zimmermann, A., Raisch, S. and Birkinshaw, J. (2015) ‘How is ambidexterity initiated? The
emergent charter definition process’, Organization Science, Vol. 26, No. 4, pp.1119–1139
[online] [Link]