Join the first of our Research Seminar Series with Professor Jake Messersmith, University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

Paper Title: Imprinting at IPO and Subsequent Downsizing Decisions

Jake Messersmith is an Associate Professor of Management at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.  Jake’s research is focused on the strategic human resource management domain, with particular interests in HR systems in small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and also in the effect of HR systems on employee well-being. His work has been published in such journals as the Academy of Management Journal, Organization Science, Personnel Psychology, Journal of Management, Journal of Applied Psychology, Human Resource Management, Human Resource Management Journal and the International Journal of Human Resource Management. Jake serves on several editorial boards within the discipline and previously served as the director of business graduate programs at the University of Nebraska.  He completed his doctoral studies in management at the University of Kansas and worked as a consultant at Accenture prior to pursuing his graduate degree.  

Abstract

This paper leverages imprinting theory to assess the extent to which a firm’s espoused commitment to employees at the time of their initial public offering (IPO) affects subsequent decisions related to the management of human capital. Specifically, this paper investigates whether firms with a stronger commitment to employees at the time of the IPO are more or less likely to engage in downsizing initiatives in subsequent years. We further assess key moderators of this relationship including the amount of funds raised at IPO, founder involvement, and the presence of a controlling shareholder. We assess these potential antecedents of downsizing post-IPO using a sample of 301 firms that went public in the U.S. between 2007 and 2014. We combine data from company filings with news releases and performance data from COMPUSTAT to test our conceptual model. Preliminary results indicate that values “imprinted” at the time of IPO affect subsequent downsizing decisions.