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Who Lives in the C-Suite? Organizational Structure and the Division of Labor in Top Management

Author Info

Listed author(s):
  • Guadalupe, Maria

    ()

    (INSEAD)

  • Li, Hongyi

    ()

    (Massachusetts Institute of Technology)

  • Wulf, Julie M.

    ()

    (Harvard Business School)

Abstract

This paper shows that top management structures in large US firms radically changed since the mid-1980s. While the number of managers reporting directly to the CEO doubled, the growth was driven primarily by functional managers rather than general managers. Using panel data on senior management positions, we explore the relationship between changes in executive team composition, firm diversification, and IT investments – which arguably alter returns to exploiting synergies through corporate-wide coordination by functional managers in headquarters. We find that the number of functional managers closer to the product ("product" functions i.e., marketing, R&D) increase as firms focus their businesses, while the number of functional managers farther from the product ("administrative" functions i.e., finance, law, HR) increase with IT investments. Finally, we show that general manager pay decreases as functional managers join the executive team suggesting a shift in activities from general to functional managers – a phenomenon we term "functional centralization."

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Paper provided by Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA) in its series IZA Discussion Papers with number 6635.

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Length: 35 pages
Date of creation: Jun 2012
Handle: RePEc:iza:izadps:dp6635
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Keywords: communication; organizational design; functions; centralization; M-form; hierarchy; top management team; information technology; activities; diversification;

Other versions of this item:

Find related papers by JEL classification:
  • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity
  • J33 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Compensation Packages; Payment Methods
  • L25 - Industrial Organization - - Firm Objectives, Organization, and Behavior - - - Firm Performance
  • D22 - Microeconomics - - Production and Organizations - - - Firm Behavior: Empirical Analysis

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  1. Nicholas Bloom & Luis Garicano & Raffaella Sadun & John Van Reenen, 2014. "The Distinct Effects of Information Technology and Communication Technology on Firm Organization," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 60(12), pages 2859-2885, December.
  2. David H. Autor & Frank Levy & Richard J. Murnane, 2003. "The skill content of recent technological change: an empirical exploration," Proceedings, Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco, issue Nov.
  3. Jacques Crémer & Luis Garicano & Andrea Prat, 2007. "Language and the Theory of the Firm," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, Oxford University Press, vol. 122(1), pages 373-407.
  4. Timothy F. Bresnahan & Erik Brynjolfsson & Lorin M. Hitt, 2002. "Information Technology, Workplace Organization, and the Demand for Skilled Labor: Firm-Level Evidence," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, Oxford University Press, vol. 117(1), pages 339-376.
  5. Wouter Dessein & Luis Garicano & Robert Gertner, 2010. "Organizing for Synergies," American Economic Journal: Microeconomics, American Economic Association, vol. 2(4), pages 77-114, November.
  6. Charles W. L. Hill & Michael A. Hitt & Robert E. Hoskisson, 1992. "Cooperative Versus Competitive Structures in Related and Unrelated Diversified Firms," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 3(4), pages 501-521, November.
  7. Alfred D. Chandler, 1969. "Strategy and Structure: Chapters in the History of the American Industrial Enterprise," MIT Press Books, The MIT Press, edition 1, volume 1, number 0262530090, July.
  8. Luis Garicano, 2000. "Hierarchies and the Organization of Knowledge in Production," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 108(5), pages 874-904, October.
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Cited by:

  1. Frank Wiengarten & Chris K. Y. Lo & Jessie Y. K. Lam, 2017. "“How does Sustainability Leadership Affect Firm Performance? The Choices Associated with Appointing a Chief Officer of Corporate Social Responsibility”," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 140(3), pages 477-493, February.
  2. Dessein, Wouter & Galeotti, Andrea & Santos, Tano, 2013. "Rational Inattention and Organizational Focus," CEPR Discussion Papers 9395, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
  3. Valerie Smeets, 2017. "Can firms oversee more workers with fewer managers?," IZA World of Labor, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA), pages 333-333, February.
  4. Betzer, André & Ibel, Maximilian & Lee, Hye Seung & Limbach, Peter & Salas, Jesus M., 2016. "Are generalists beneficial to corporate shareholders? Evidence from sudden deaths," CFR Working Papers 16-12, University of Cologne, Centre for Financial Research (CFR).
  5. MIYAJIMA Hideaki & OGAWA Ryo & USHIJIMA Tatsuo, 2017. "Are Smaller (Larger) Corporate Headquarters Better?," Discussion papers 17004, Research Institute of Economy, Trade and Industry (RIETI).
  6. André Betzer & Maximilian Ibel & Hye Seung (Grace) Lee & Peter Limbach & Jesus M. Salas, 2017. "Are Generalists Beneficial to Corporate Shareholders? Evidence from Sudden Deaths," Schumpeter Discussion Papers SDP16009, Universitätsbibliothek Wuppertal, University Library.

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