Project brief

This project aims to develop better understanding of how CEO (Chief Executive Officer) psychology and ideology affect companies that face unprecedented change. As the so-called Industry 4.0 revolution gathers pace, with advancements in artificial intelligence, digitization, manufacturing processes and robotics beginning to redefine how people live, work and learn, there is growing interest in understanding the impact CEOs’ cognitive and ideological make-up (see e.g., Chatterjee & Pollack, 2017; Chin et al., 2013; Chin & Semadeni, 2017; Gerstner et al., 2013; Gupta et al., 2018), has on companies’ ability to navigate effectively through the uncertainty of the new revolution.
Are narcissistic CEOs better placed than others to lead change and innovation in an evolving landscape of threats and opportunities, because they are habituated to taking bold and risky decisions? How does a CEO’s embrace of a liberal or a conservative ideology influence adoption of disruptive innovations that may benefit shareholders, but entail hardship for a firm’s other stakeholders? Indeed, how is organizational innovation likely to be affected by specific configurations of CEO personality traits and ideology?

These are but a few examples of the sort of questions that fall within the scope of this project. The project offers opportunities to make major theoretical contributions and contribute practically relevant knowledge.