Drawing upon contingency theory, we analyze the antecedents and performance consequences of chief strategy officer (CSO) presence in top management teams (TMTs). We argue that strategic and structural complexity affects the decision to have a CSO in the TMT and its effect on firm performance. The results of a sample of S&P 500 firms over a five-year period reveal that diversification, acquisition activity, and TMT role interdependence are positively associated with CSO presence. However, we also find that the structural choice to have a CSO in the TMT does not significantly affect a firm's financial performance. This first systematic analysis of CSO presence informs research on CSOs and contributes to the emerging literature on TMT structure.

The Viable System Model by Stafford Beer embodies a theory about the preconditions of organizational viability. This theory has been discussed extensively by the academics and professionals of organizational cybernetics. The theoretical claim of the Viable System Model (VSM) is bold. It asserts to specify the necessary and sufficient preconditions for the viability of any organization. The empirical evidence, to date, amounts to a substantial corpus of case studies from applications that support the claim of the theory. The present contribution leads beyond the status quo. Its purpose is to test the theory empirically, on the grounds of a broad survey and pertinent quantitative analysis. The available data support the hypotheses and therewith corroborate the theory of the VSM. This implies that the VSM is a reliable orientation device for the diagnosis and design of organizations to strengthen their vitality, resilience, and development potential.

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In our study, we develop and test a conceptual model of the individual-level sources and consequences of the chief strategy officer's (CSO's) perceived discretion in different organizational situations. Using archival and unique survey data of 121 CSOs of European firms, we find that the variation in the perceptions of discretion is partially a consequence of the CSO's structural and expert power as well as of the CSO's cultural power distance. We also find that the CSO's perceived discretion negatively affects firm performance, however, only in situations in which the CSO actually has little discretion. The study contributes to research on managerial discretion by extending the analysis to the individual level and by considering the discretion of an important senior executive other than the CEO. plateforme de recherche Alexandria https://www.alexandria.unisg.ch | 07.06.2015 mot-clé Managerial discretion, power, chief strategy officer, top management team, decision-making, managerial cognition Genre papier de conférence (English) nom de la conférence 74th Annual Meeting of the Academy of Management (Philadelphia, PA) date de la conférence 1-8-2014

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