Sports CEOs and Corporate Innovation
研究发现，大学时期是学生运动员的CEO所在企业专利数量、引用次数和经济价值显著更高，且该效应主要由参与高水平竞技的CEO驱动，表明早期体育经历培养的领导力能促进企业创新。
ABSTRACT Using a hand‐collected data set, we find that firms led by CEOs who were student‐athletes in college exhibit significantly superior innovation outcomes, as measured by patent numbers, citation counts, and the economic value of patents. Evidence from CEO turnover analysis supports a CEO imprinting interpretation. Additional analyses indicate that our results are primarily driven by CEOs who completed at the most competitive amateur levels, rather than those who participated recreationally. Our study contributes to the literature on CEO traits by demonstrating that participation in highly competitive sports during formative years can cultivate leadership qualities that translate into enhanced corporate innovation.