Shall we dance?: the rationale for leveraged buyout syndication

Syndicated investments are common in the private equity industry. This pa- per examines how management team composition might influence LBO syndica- tion decisions, and links both to performance. By using a unique hand-collected dataset of 947 LBO investments, we show that investment size, geographic dis- tance, and investor experience increase syndication likelihood. Besides, manage- ment teams with engineers and MBA graduates are prone to syndication. More specifically, Harvard MBAs tend to work with each other while Columbia MBAs are more likely to syndicate with each other as well as with engineers. We find a non-linear relationship between syndication and performance, probably due to different inherent nature of deals. MBA graduates seem to affect perfor- mance in non-syndicated deals, but not in syndicated ones. It thus suggests that MBAs are good at pre-deal screening, and might further explain why they would seek outside expertise when needed. Finally, we find that the strongest syndi- cation match that enhances value is the "Harvard MBA-and-Harvard MBA" pair. Hence, Harvard MBAs may syndicate with each other because a personal acquaintance enables a better match of skills. For other teams, syndication is likely for the purpose of diversification or future deal reciprocity. Keywords: Leveraged Buyouts, Syndication, Top Management Team

Managerial incentives and investment policy in family firms: evidence from a structural analysis

This paper provides evidence that CEO incentive pay mediates the effect of family preferences on corporate investment policy. Our study focuses on the option portfolio volatility sensitivity vega, which motivates the risk-taking behavior of undiversified managers. After controlling for factors that affect incentive pay and investment policy simultaneously, we find that one-third of underinvestment in riskier R&D projects in active family firms can be attributed to a significantly lower vega. Passive family firms allocate more capital to R&D as opposed to active family firms, and are more active in M&A deal making. In contrast to many prior studies, pay incentives and families are not associated with capital expenditures. Overall, our empirical results suggest that CEO pay incentives induce investment policy contingent on firm risk. Family CEO incentive pay manifests the family preference for lower risk, especially in firms with higher firm risk. Nonetheless, after replacing family CEOs with outside professionals, investments in both R&D and M&A increase, which is consistent with the family preference for extended investment horizons. Interestingly, such a preference seems not to be manifested in incentive pay

Organic corrosion inhibitor of triethylenetetramine into chloride contamination concrete by bidirectional electromigration rehabilitation

Triethylenetetramine (TETA), as a corrosion inhibitor for steel in aqueous media was introduced into chloride-contaminated concrete specimens by using a novel method called bidirectional electromigration rehabilitation (BIEM). An electric field was applied between embedded steel cathodes and external anodes to inject the corrosion inhibitor from external electrolytes into the concrete and at the same time to extract the chloride ions from the concrete cover zone.After the treatment, the specimens were drilled to determine the concentration profiles of the corrosion inhibitor, chloride and hydroxyl ions within the concrete. Effects of variations in the applied current density, duration of electrolysis, water/cement ratio, initial chloride content and surface carbonation on the concentration profiles of the proposed ions were determined. Electrochemical chloride extraction (ECE) in which saturated Ca(OH)2 solution was used as an external electrolyte was applied as control experiments. As is expected, chloride content decreased and alkalinity increased after the treatment. Also, the concentration of the inhibitor injected around the embedded steel bars was adequate to provide corrosion protection. The results can provide a direction in designing the BIEM process

Deprivation, social class and social mobility at Big Four and non-Big Four firms

Using the work of Bourdieu and Savage, this paper investigates social class and social mobility among chartered accountants who qualified with The Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland in 2009. We find that these accountants tend to come from privileged backgrounds and that those who qualified with Big Four firms possess more economic, social and cultural capital than those who qualify with other firms. Our study provides fresh insights into how elements of social class interact with social background. In contrast with the prevailing view that there is limited social mobility in the accountancy profession, we find some evidence of social mobility, suggesting that current debates are based on contestable assumptions. We also find that chartered accountants from more deprived backgrounds as indicated by childhood postcode often have a father who has a professional or managerial occupation, so are not deprived on all measures. Where those from more deprived backgrounds accessed chartered accountancy careers, this was at the expense of people whose parents held lower rather than higher professional or managerial jobs. This suggests that the most advantaged maintain access to chartered accountancy but those from more middling professional homes are displaced when those from more deprived backgrounds gain access

Professor David Minnikin Memorial Lecture:An era of the mycobacterial cell wall lipid biomarkers

This paper is dedicated to the memory of Professor David Ernest Minnikin (1939–2021). David was one of the key scientists who pioneered the field of Mycobacterium tuberculosis cell envelope research for over half a century. From the classification, identification, and extraction of the unusual lipids of the mycobacterial cell wall, to exploiting them as characteristic lipid biomarkers for sensitive detection, his ideas enlightened a whole world of possibilities within the tuberculosis (TB) field. In addition, his definition of the intricate models now forms a key milestone in our understanding of the M. tuberculosis cell envelope and has resolved many unanswered questions on the evolution of M. tuberculosis

Social capital, syndication, and investment performance: evidence from PE investing in LBOs

This study examines the influence of social capital on leveraged buyout (LBO) investments. Exploiting proprietary global private equity data at the investment-level for leveraged buyouts, we find that alumni of Harvard's MBA program are more inclined to co-invest and form syndicates in LBO with each another. The phenomenon of Crimson pairing manifests in deals that involve uneven investments in co-investor capital, necessitating trust to alleviate agency costs and enabling investors to diversify their portfolios. The outcome of Crimson pairing is an increase in value and investment returns relative to all other typical LBO syndication partnerships