BA/Leverhulme Small Research Grant Awarded to Dr Sushil Sainani

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We are pleased to announce that Dr Sushil Sainani, Assistant Professor of Finance at the Management School, has been successful in winning a research grant from The British Academy (BA)/Leverhulme Small Research Grants.

The amount granted by BA/Leverhulme Small Research Grants is of the amount £9,681 which will enable Sushil to conduct proposed research on the topic of corporate governance with the project title: When Spending Time with the Family Isn’t: The Masking of CEO Firings”.

By far the British Academy’s most popular scheme in terms of applications received and number of awards made, the BA/Leverhulme Small Research Grants stand as one of the Academy’s highest profile programmes with awards made to academics working at around 100 Institutions around the UK. The awards granted to successful applicants are up to £10,000 in value and tenable for up to 24 months.

Sushil’s project will focus on studying the antecedents and consequences of masking CEO firings. Deliberate masking of CEO firings essentially disguises the real value of a firm's assets, which in turn has negative consequences for shareholders, employees, the communities in which firms work, and society at large. Because the reasons for a CEO’s departure are not fully disclosed, researchers can only classify a CEO’s exit as forced or voluntary with uncertainty. This study will identify societal-, industry-, individual- and firm-level antecedents of masking CEO firings. It will also provide insights on the consequences of masking CEO firings for firm value and other outcomes.

Commenting on the award, Sushil said:

“I am happy to be awarded this research grant from the British Academy. I am also excited and look forward to conducting this research with an intention that it will help investors, regulators, and other stakeholders in better assessment of corporate governance practices and policies of their firm(s).”