The Effects of Top Management Team Age Diversity During a Crisis: Evidence from the COVID-19 Pandemic 

https://doi.org/10.2308/JMAR-2023-057

Journal of Management Accounting Research, Forthcoming

52 Pages Posted: 29 Jun 2024

See all articles by James Plecnik

James Plecnik

Loyola Marymount University - College of Business Administration

Shan Wang

Loyola Marymount University

Date Written: June 21, 2024

Abstract

This paper studies the impact of top management team (TMT) age diversity on firm performance during the COVID-19 pandemic. We argue that age-diverse TMTs have a combination of various experiences that lead to creative problem solving, and that this creativity supports firms in addressing the unique problems created by COVID-19 (e.g., remote work). Overall, we find that age-diverse TMTs improve firm performance during the COVID-19 pandemic. Further analyses indicate that age diversity is more likely to improve performance for firms subject to significant pandemic pressures (e.g., firms with high physical investment activity). This finding is in contrast to the fact that we find innovative firms do not benefit as much from age diversity, perhaps because these firms were more prepared for the COVID-19 pandemic and therefore required less creative leadership. Finally, we find that firms with inclusive cultures best facilitate the implementation of TMT age diversity.

Keywords: Top Management Team, Age Diversity, Firm Performance, COVID-19 Pandemic G30, M41, M14, M12, L25

Suggested Citation

Plecnik, James and Wang, Shan, The Effects of Top Management Team Age Diversity During a Crisis: Evidence from the COVID-19 Pandemic  (June 21, 2024). https://doi.org/10.2308/JMAR-2023-057, Journal of Management Accounting Research, Forthcoming, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=4879806 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4879806

James Plecnik

Loyola Marymount University - College of Business Administration ( email )

Los Angeles, CA 90045
United States

Shan Wang (Contact Author)

Loyola Marymount University ( email )

1 LMU Drive
Los Angeles, CA 90054
United States
3103387660 (Phone)
90045-2678 (Fax)

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