Beyond the Board Realm: Women in Senior Management and their Impact on IPO Capital Funding

Abstract

Abstract This study assesses the importance of female senior managers in Chinese IPO firms debuting in Hong Kong. I define senior management teams (SMTs) in relation to IPO prospectus disclosures. For the vast majority of firms, little to no overlap exists between SMT members and board personnel. Women are much better represented in SMTs than on boards. A central hypothesis is that Chinese firms' SMT members implement business strategy while board officers provide political connections. Unlike boards, female representation at SMT level strongly supports initial valuations. Findings suggest that women offer resource dependencies, add expertise and boost capital funding. In contrast to boards, underwriter quality is increasing in female representation at SMT level. Higher‐quality underwriters also gravitate towards SMTs with stronger academic bona fides. The present study also contributes by drawing connections and prescriptions with wider upper echelons, resource dependence and stakeholder theories. Overall, findings suggest that gender‐diverse SMTs play a major role in capital funding. More gender‐inclusive SMTs thus foster both social and business objectives.

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