Four Themes of the Impact of Management Teams on Organizational Performance

Abstract

This article draws together accumulated research regarding top management teams with the more general literature of work on small groups, and adds detailed interpretation, thereby contributing to the literature on founding/management teams of new ventures. Prior TMT (Top Management Team) research has commonly linked demographic variables to team effectiveness. However, a growing understanding of the effects of teams on organizational performance suggests that besides team demographic variables, more fine-grained variables concerning team and individual processes have to be taken into account in order to better understand the link between entrepreneurial teams and organizational performance. Drawing on a large body of literature, four themes are proposed to illuminate these links in new ventures: resources, structural and process effects of teams, task leadership, and the effects of team members’ personal integration into the task process.

SMEs’ Wealth Creation Model of an Emerging Economy

“…R-square= 0.14 indicating that 14% of the variations in wealth creation of the SMEs were traceable to the organizational infrastructure. This is consistent with the view of Clark (1996), De Clerca, Dimoy, andThongpapanl (2015), Messeghem (2003), Ray et al (2004) and Vyakarnam and Handelberg (2005) that capabilities and competencies that are capable of achieving competitive advantage in operations are premised on the organizational infrastructure, but the fact that the association was a weak one is a pointer to the simplicity required of the SMEs' organizational infrastructure.…”

Moderating Influences on the Firm's Strategic Orientation-Performance Relationship

“…Some researchers have examined the linkage between managerial characteristics and performance (Child, 1974;Norburn and Birley, 1988;Virnay and Tushman, 1986;Poon et al, 2006;Vyakarnam and Handelberg, 2005), while others have emphasized the link between specific managerial characteristics and firm strategic behavior (Hofer and Davoust, 1977;Kerr, 1982;Wiersema, Van der Pol, and Messer, 1980). However, few studies have integrated these approaches.…”

Universities and the success of entrepreneurial ventures: evidence from the small business innovation research program

“…Most authors report strong positive links between these traits and characteristics, such as the level of education, functional expertise, and industry experience of the founder or members of the top management team, and indicators of new venture performance (e.g., sales growth or the creation of new products). As noted inVyakarnam and Handelberg (2005), this connection appears to be stronger in high-technology industries, where firms operate under highvelocity or turbulent conditions (seeEisenhardt and Schoonhoven 1990;Finkelstein and Hambrick 1990;Wiersema and Bantel 1992).More specifically,Shrader and Siegel (2007) analyzed the role of human capital in the growth and development of 198 new technology-based ventures. Their results imply that the fit between strategy and team experience is a key determinant of the long-term performance of these high-tech entrepreneurial firms.…”

“…In recent years, several authors have assessed the relationship between certain human capital characteristics and industry experience of the founders of high-technology start-up companies and subsequent performance of these firms (seeColombo and Grilli 2005;Vyakarnam and Handelberg 2005;Gilbert et al 2006;Shrader and Siegel 2007).Some papers focused on the traits of company founders, while others examine the characteristics of the top management teams of entrepreneurial firms. Most authors report strong positive links between these traits and characteristics, such as the level of education, functional expertise, and industry experience of the founder or members of the top management team, and indicators of new venture performance (e.g., sales growth or the creation of new products).…”