Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods Commons^™

Does The Leader Make A Difference? Relationship Between Executive Leader Personality And Entrepreneurial Firm Performance, Theresa M. Welbourne, Marcie A. Cavanaugh , Timothy A. Judge

Theresa M. Welbourne, PhD

The purpose of this study was to expand research on personality and leadership by investigating the relationship between executive leader personality and firm performance. Drawing from research on the five-factor model of personality (the Big Five), executive leader emotional adjustment (low neuroticism) and conscientiousness were hypothesized to be positively related to firm performance. No specific hypotheses were offered for the relationships between the remaining Big Five personality traits (extraversion, agreeableness, and openness to experience) and firm performance. Using a longitudinal sample of initial public offering (IPO) firms, results indicated that emotional adjustment and extraversion were related to measures of firm …