An empirical investigation of corporate culture and productivity using textual analysis approach
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17811/ebl.15.2.2026.139-150Keywords:
Corporate Culture, Productivity, Earnings CallsAbstract
We investigate the impact of corporate culture on firm productivity using textual analysis of earnings calls. Employing the Ackerberg-Caves-Frazer (2015) control-function approach and a shift-share instrument exploiting regional social capital, we find a robust positive causal effect. However, this effect is not uniform: productivity gains are driven specifically by innovation and quality. Validation against Glassdoor reviews confirms that innovation measures reflect “lived” culture, while teamwork may represent strategic signaling. The findings suggest that specific cultural attributes, rather than generalized culture, are key drivers of productivity.
Downloads
References
Aboramadan, M., Albashiti, B., Alharazin, H., and Zaidoune, S. (2020) Organizational culture, innovation and performance: a study from a non-western context. Journal of Management Development, 39(4), 437-451.
Ackerberg, D. A., Caves, K., and Frazer, G. (2015) Identification properties of recent production function estimators. Econometrica, 83(6), 2411-2451.
Altamuro, J. L., Gray, J. V., and Zhang, H. (2022) Corporate integrity culture and compliance: A study of the pharmaceutical industry. Contemporary Accounting Research, 39(1), 428-458.
Alvesson, M. (1993) Cultural perspectives on organizations. New York: Cambridge University Press.
Borusyak, K., Hull, P., and Jaravel, X. (2025) A practical guide to shift-share instruments. Journal of Economic Perspectives, 39(1), 181-204.
Chatman, J. A., Caldwell, D. F., O'Reilly, C. A., and Doerr, B. (2014) Parsing organizational culture: How the norm for adaptability influences the relationship between culture consensus and financial performance in high‐technology firms. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 35(6), 785-808.
Cherian, J., Gaikar, V., Paul, R., and Pech, R. (2021) Corporate culture and its impact on employees’ attitude, performance, productivity, and behavior: An investigative analysis from selected organizations of the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Journal of Open Innovation: Technology, Market, and Complexity, 7(1), 45.
Denison, D. (1990) Corporate culture and organizational Effectiveness, Wiley: New York.
Gorton, G. B., Grennan, J., and Kiku, A. (2022) Corporate culture. Annual Review of Financial Economics, 14, 535-561.
Graham, J. R., J. Grennan, C. R. Harvey, and S. Rajgopal. (2022) Corporate culture: Evidence from the field. Journal of Financial Economics, 146(2), 552-593.
Guiso, L., P. Sapienza, and L. Zingales. (2015) The value of corporate culture. Journal of Financial Economics, 117, 60-76.
Kile, C. O., and Phillips, M. E. (2009) Using industry classification codes to sample high-technology firms: Analysis and recommendations. Journal of Accounting, Auditing & Finance, 24(1), 35-58.
Kotter, J. P., and Heskett, J. L. (2008) Corporate Culture and Performance. Free Press.
Levinsohn, J., and Petrin, A. (2003) Estimating production functions using inputs to control for unobservables. The Review of Economic Studies, 70(2), 317-341.
Li, K., Mai, F., Shen, R., and Yan, X. (2021) Measuring corporate culture using machine learning. The Review of Financial Studies, 34(7), 3265-3315.
Liu, C., Ryan, D., Lin, G., and Xu, C. (2023) No rose without a thorn: Corporate teamwork culture and financial statement misconduct. Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Finance, 37, 100786.
Martin, J. (1992) Cultures in Organizations: Three Perspectives, New York: Oxford University Press.
O’Reilly III, C. A., Caldwell, D. F., Chatman, J. A., and Doerr, B. (2014) The promise and problems of organizational culture: CEO personality, culture, and firm performance. Group & Organization Management, 39(6), 595-625.
U.S. Congress Joint Economic Committee. (2018) The Social Capital Project: The Geography of Social Capital in America, SCP Report No. 1-18. Washington, DC.
Xie, X., Wu, Y., Xie, P., Yu, X., and Wang, H. (2021) Organizational innovation culture and firms’ new product performance in two emerging markets: The moderating effects of institutional environments and organizational cohesion. Journal of Management & Organization, 27(5), 972-991.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
The works published in this journal are subject to the following terms:
1. Oviedo University Press (the publisher) retains the property rights (copyright) of published works, and encourages and enables the reuse of the same under the license specified in paragraph 2.
© Ediuno. Ediciones de la Universidad de Oviedo / Oviedo University Press
2. The works are published in the online edition of the journal under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-Non Derives 3.0 Spain (legal text). You can copy, use, distribute, transmit and publicly display, provided that: i) you cite the author and the original source of publication (journal, publisher and URL of the work), ii) they are not used for commercial purposes, iii) mentions the existence and specifications of this license.
3. Conditions of self-archiving. The author can archive the post-print version of the article (publisher’s version) on the author’s personal website and/or on the web of the institution where he belong, including a link to the page of the journal and putting the way of citation of the work. Economics and Business Letters and its URL https://reunido.uniovi.es/index.php/EBL/index are the only authorized source for correctly giving the reference of the publisher’s version in every mention of the article.