The Effect of Strong Corporate Culture and Sudden CEO Turnovers on the Financial Statement Comparability in Listed Companies in Tehran Stock Exchange

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

1 Accounting, Faculty of Administrative Sciences and Economics, University of Isfahan, Isfahan, Iran.

2 Isfahan University

Abstract

This study examines the effects of strong corporate culture and sudden CEO turnovers on financial statement comparability. Strong corporate culture enhances financial statement comparability through two channels: clarifying corporate goals and procedures, and reducing managers’ incentives for inaccurate reporting. Sudden CEO turnovers also influence firm performance, financial report quality, and statement comparability. Data from 110 companies listed on the Tehran Stock Exchange were analyzed using systematic elimination sampling over 2013–2022, with hypotheses tested via multivariate panel data regression. Results show that strong corporate culture positively and significantly affects financial statement comparability. Even during sudden CEO turnovers, strong corporate culture positively affects comparability. These findings align with arguments that strong corporate culture reduces managerial opportunism, leading to more consistent decisions in similar economic events and enhancing accounting practices and financial information quality.

Keywords

Main Subjects


Accounting Standards Development Committee (2009). Accounting standards, Tehran, Audit Organization. (in Persian).
Afzali, M. (2023(. Corporate Culture and Financial Statement Comparability. Advances in Accounting, 60, 100640.
Audit Organization (2012). Accounting Standards Publication, 160, Tehran: Audit Organization Publications. (in Persian).
Bhandari, A., B., Mammadov, M., Thevenot, H., Vakilzadeh. (2022). Corporate Culture and Financial Reporting Quality. Accounting Horizons, 36(1), 1–24.
Biggerstaff, L., D.C., Cicero, A., Puckett, (2015). Suspect CEOs, Unethical Culture, and Corporate Misbehavior. Journal of Financial Economics, 117(1), 98–121.
Cameron Kim S, E., Quinn Robert, (2006). Diagnosing and Changing Organizational Culture. Addison Wesley. Reading, MA.
Chen, C. W., Collins, D. W., Kravet, T. D., & Mergenthaler, R. D. (2018). Financial Statement Comparability and the Efficiency of Acquisition Decisions. Contemporary Accounting Research, 35(1), 164–202.
Chen, H., Francis, B. B., Hasan, T., & Wu, Q. (2022). Does corporate culture impact audit pricing? Evidence from textual analysis. Journal of Business Finance and Accounting, 49(5–6), 778–806.
Choi, J, S, Choi, L, Myers, D, Ziebert, (2018). Financial Statement Comparability and the IN formativeness of Stock Prices about Future Earnings. Contemporary Accounting Research, Forthcoming, 36(1), 389-417.
Davidson, R., A., Dey, A, Smith. (2015). Executives’ off-the-Job Behavior, Corporate Culture, and Financial Reporting Risk. Journal of Financial Economics, 117(1), 5–28.
De Franco, G., S., Kothari, R, Verdi. (2011). The Benefits of Financial Statement Comparability. Journal of Accounting Research, 49(4), 895–931.
Droodi, H. & Kangari, S. (2014). Explaining the Relationship of Organizational Culture in the Growth of Human Resources. Quantitative Studies in Management, 5(1), 120-130. (in Persian)
Francis, J. R., M. L., Pinnuck, O, Watanabe. (2014). Auditor Style and Financial Statement Comparability. The Accounting Review, 89(2), 605–633.
Foroughi, D. & Qasimzad, P. (2014). The Effect of Comparability of Financial Statements on the Reaction Coefficient of Future Earnings. Accounting and Auditing Review, 22(4), 479-500. (in Persian)
Guggenmos, R. D., & Van der Stede, W. A. (2020). The Effects of Creative Culture on Real Earnings Management. Contemporary Accounting Research, 37(4), 2319–2356.
Guiso, L., P., Sapienza, L, Zingales. (2015). The Value of Corporate Culture. Journal of Financial Economics, 117(1), 60–76.
Graham, J. R., Grennan, J., Harvey, C. R., & Rajgopal, S. (2022). Corporate Culture: Evidence from the Field. Journal of Financial Economics, 146(2), 552–593.
Gujarati, D. (2008). Fundamentals of Econometrics, Volume 2, Translated by Hamid Abrishmi, Tehran: Tehran University Publications. (in Persian).
Hashemi Dehchi, M; Izadinia, N & Amiri, H (2019). The Effect of Comparability of Financial Statements on the Relevance of Accounting Information with Emphasis on the Role of Expert Investors and Information Asymmetry. Journal of Accounting and Auditing Review, 27(3), 473-494. (in Persian) 
Hassas Yeganeh, Y; Mazloumi, N. & Kurdestani, N.  (2012). The Role of Institutional Investment in the Performance of (private) Insurance Companies in Iran. Insurance Research Journal, 2(28), 1-24. (in Persian)
Hossein Abdullah, M. A; Maharti, Y; Malekzadeh, Gh & Khorakian, A. R (2022). Investigating the Effect of Corporate Culture on the Performance of Small and Medium-Sized Companies in Iran and Iraq, Considering the Mediating Role of Entrepreneurial Orientation and the Moderating Role of National Culture. Transformation Management Journal, 14(1), 122-58. (in Persian)
Kim, S., Kraft, P., & Ryan, S. G. (2013). Financial Statement Comparability and Credit Risk.
Review of Accounting Studies, 18(3), 783–823.
Li, K., F., Mai, R., Shen, X, Yan. (2021). Measuring Corporate Culture Using Machine learning. Review of Financial Studies, 34(7), 3265–3315.
McGuire, S. T., Omer, T. C., & Sharp, N. Y. (2012). The Impact of Religion on Financial Reporting Irregularities. The Accounting Review, 87(2), 645–673.
Moradi, M. & Jodaki, R. (2023). The Effect of Organizational Culture, Corporate Governance and Audit Quality on Auditors' Performance. Professional Auditing Research, 23(10), 73-95. (in Persian)
O’Reilly, C. A., J. A, Chatman. (1996). Culture as Social Control, Corporations, Cults, and Commitment. Research in Organizational Behavior, 18, 157–200.
Pan, Y., Siegel, S., & Wang, T. Y. (2017). Corporate Risk Culture. Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, 52(6), 2327–2367.
Robert, K., Sangwan, K., & Prianka, M. (2018). When Does Comparability Better Enhance Relevance? Policy Implications from Empirical Evidence. Journal of Accounting and Public Policy, 37(5), 436-457.
Sørensen, J. B. (2002). The Strength of Corporate Culture and the Reliability of Firm Performance. Administrative Science Quarterly, 47(1), 70–91.
Weber, Y., Shenkar, O., & Raveh, A. (1996). National and Corporate Cultural Fit in Mergers/Acquisitions: An Exploratory Study. Management Science, 42(8), 1215–1227.
Zingales, L. (2015). The Cultural Revolution in Finance. Journal of Financial Economics, 117(1), 1–4.