Discontinued operations should reflect a strategic shift of resources that will help to improve future firm performance. A shift of fixed cost allocation from discontinuing or disposing of a line of business is discussed in management text books, and such decisions are complex and affect the...

Uncertainty about a CEO's ability is related to his/her length of service to a firm. Accordingly, monitoring systems should vary depending upon CEOs' tenure. Long-tenured CEOs require less monitoring because their ability has been revealed over time. However, as CEOs advance in their careers,...

In recent decades there have been several changes in the definition of discontinued operations in the U.S., suggesting that regulators and prepares consider them important. We examine the reasons that firms choose to discontinue operations and their performance after the changes. As in earlier...

Discontinuing an operation is a major decision for a manager, and requires approval from the board of directors. We provide valuable insights into these strategic choices. First, we document changes in reports of discontinued operations in recent decades. There is a major increase in...

We analyze CEO pay and equity holdings for the S&P 1,500 and broad industry classes. Between 1994 and 2000 real annual compensation doubled, and there was a dramatic shift from salary to option grants. The value and proportion of CEO equity holdings and the price-performance-sensitivity of their...