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Professionalization and the CEO effect over the very long run

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  • Aldous, Michael
  • Fliers, Philip T.
  • Turner, John D.

Abstract

This paper introduces a new explanation for the time variation in the extent to which CEOs matter for firm performance: the professionalization of the role. We explore whether increased access to specialized knowledge and greater codification of executive responsibilities rendered CEOs increasingly consequential for firm outcomes over time. Using a history-to-theory framework, we theorize how individual CEO characteristics account for temporal variation in the CEO effect in the United Kingdom. Then, using a hand-collected dataset of the largest 100 UK companies between 1900 and 2009, we find that the CEO effect in the UK varies between 6 and 17 percent and that professionalization accounts for an increasing share of relative explanatory power of the CEO effect over time.

Suggested Citation

  • Aldous, Michael & Fliers, Philip T. & Turner, John D., 2026. "Professionalization and the CEO effect over the very long run," QBS Working Paper Series 2026/08, Queen's University Belfast, Queen's Business School.
    • Handle: RePEc:zbw:qmsrps:202608
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