Narrow Results

The research and development (R&D) expenditure results in the innovation for any firm but affects the financial performance and riskiness of the firm at the same time. The relation among innovation, the riskiness of the firm and financial performance is discussed in this study. This study determined the impact of innovation on financial performance and also looked into the impact of innovation on riskiness of the firms. This study is conducted on the most innovative firms according to Forbes magazine over the period 1998–2012. Our findings show positive, significant and robust relationship between innovation and financial performance which is consistent with the existing literature. On the other hand, impact of innovation on riskiness is positive and significant which shows that more innovative firms are more riskier and ultimately profitability is increased for those firms.

This study investigates the financial and non-financial impacts of the use of sustainability criteria in banks’ executive compensation plans. The sample covers all the globally and systemically important European banks over the period 2013–2017. Panel data-fixed effect estimations are employed to mitigate endogeneity concerns and to control for within-firm dynamics. The implementation of sustainable criteria in the banks’ remuneration contracts was found to (i) negatively impact economic performance, (ii) negatively impact the riskiness profile, and (iii) positively impact sustainability performance. These findings have important implications for investors as well as banks. Indeed, these results are encouraging for the use of sustainability targets in executive compensation for restricting excessive risk-taking behaviors and improving sustainability performance.