The impact of crisis on firms´stakeholders and the moderating effect of innovation

Abstract

This dissertation empirically investigates the effects of the Global Financial Crisis (GFC) and the COVID-19 pandemic on German firms and their stakeholders, focusing specifically on two key aspects: (i) vocational training provision and (ii) payments to stakeholders. Both vocational training and wages are crucial economic factors. Vocational training is a fundamental component of human capital development, enhancing workers' skills and productivity, thereby driving economic growth and improving firms' competitiveness. Wages, on the other hand, play a vital role in labor supply by reflecting workers' value in the economy while also influencing consumer demand. This thesis makes a significant contribution to existing literature by examining potential differences in crisis impacts between stakeholders of innovative and non-innovative firms (Chapters 1 and 3). Additionally, it distinguishes between various stakeholder groups (Chapters 2 and 3). The findings reveal that both general training provision and training expenses per employee increased during the financial crisis. While innovation does not moderate the increase in general training provision, non-innovative firms exhibit a stronger rise in training expenses per employee. Regarding pay adjustments, results indicate that affected firms are more likely to reduce payments across all stakeholder groups. Notably, reductions in executive compensation occur with significantly higher likelihood compared to other groups. Moreover, innovation increases the probability of pay cuts—particularly for shareholders and executives—suggesting that innovative firms primarily pass on the implicit costs of crises to groups with greater financial flexibility. Overall, this dissertation enhances our understanding of how crises impact firms and their stakeholders while emphasizing the critical role of innovation as a moderating factor within this area of research