According to a commonly held assumption, women CEOs are more risk-averse than their male counterparts. Some studies have even demonstrated that women in top leadership roles are less likely than men to engage in acquisitions.
But that impression is woefully misleading, according to new research co-authored by Timothy Hannigan in the Alberta School of Business. The study, published recently in the Strategic Management Journal, shows that, while female CEOs of major firms make fewer acquisitions one key measure of strategic decision-making than men on average, that difference disappears when they are under high levels of scrutiny.
"Many do acquire, and some make substantial acquisitions," write the study's authors, pointing to former Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer, who acquired 53 companies for more than $2 billion over four years; Hewlett-Packard CEO Carly Fiorina, who purchased Compaq for $25 billion; and IBM's Ginni Rometty, who acquired Red Hat for $34 billion.
