This study examined the strength of CEOs’ influence on CSR in Chinese listed companies. The companies chosen belonged to the non-financial sector and were listed in the Shanghai stock exchange from 2010 to 2019. The data was extracted from audited annual reports of companies including the director’s report, chairman’s statements, and notes to financial statements. We applied OLS regression as a baseline methodology to determine the extent and impact of CEO power on CSR disclosures. The results indicated significantly negative relationship between the CEOs’ power and CSR disclosure. Our results showed that separate roles of chairman and CEO can reduce agency problems and increase the CSR disclosures. This study is of importance for regulators, as it enforces the view that regulators and policymakers should continue efforts to improve corporate governance practices and CSR reporting in China, as these changes will not only improve the performance of companies but also befit society at large.

Purpose: The research study provides empirical insights on the relationship between entrepreneurial leadership (EL), entrepreneurial passion for founding (EPF), entrepreneurial bricolage (EB) and project success (PS), in the case of freelancers. The study aims to get a better understanding of whether freelancers, who behave like entrepreneurial leaders, can successfully complete projects through EB.Design/methodology/approach: The study collected data from 209 freelancers through snowball sampling, in two waves, with a time-lag of fourteen days, to better examine the causality of variables. Data were analyzed by Model No. 4 and 7 (i.e. mediation and moderation, respectively) of Process macro.Findings: Drawing on the effectuation theory, the results show that EB mediates the relationship between EL and PS and EPF moderates this relationship.Practical implications: The freelancers can formally establish businesses later, after knowing whether they can complete these new types of projects. These online freelancing platforms can provide special services to freelancers who first want to test their skills on unrelated projects. In sum, the paper suggests that freelancers can be successful entrepreneurial leaders.Originality/value: The EL, EPF, EB and PS are studied in the context of the informal sector, i.e. freelancing, which is the emerging working style in the world. It provides an in-depth understanding of phenomena in freelancers that lacks background literature.

Drawing on the effectuation theory, the research study provides evidence on the relationship between entrepreneurial leadership (EL), entrepreneurial passion for founding (EPF), entrepreneurial bri...

Purpose: Acknowledging the pivotal importance of entrepreneurial orientation for firms' survival, researchers are investigating the contextual factors that could modify the relationship between entrepreneurial education at the post-secondary level and entrepreneurial orientation. Drawing on institutional and managerial discretion theories, this study examined, using archival data, whether online freelancers with varying levels of entrepreneurial education and cultural backgrounds exhibit lower or higher levels of entrepreneurial orientation, as evidenced by their sales pitches on online freelancing platforms. Design/methodology/approach: This research used text analysis methodology to study entrepreneurial orientation, entrepreneurial education at the post-secondary level and culture. It is achieved by first quantifying entrepreneurial orientation through a search of the entrepreneurial orientation's word list in sales descriptions of 25,000 online freelancers from 58 countries, and then conducting correlation and regression tests to examine the moderating effect of cultural values on the relationship between entrepreneurial education at the post-secondary level and entrepreneurial orientation. Findings: The study found that entrepreneurial education at the post-secondary level affects the entrepreneurial orientation of society's online freelancers; however, all cultural moderators do not influence this relationship. Assertiveness, humane orientation and performance orientation are the only cultural values that moderate the entrepreneurial orientation level. Moreover, findings suggest that culture has a critical role in generating strategic results and a positive impact of entrepreneurial education programs on entrepreneurial orientation. Originality/value: This study employed sales pitches (sales descriptions) of online freelancers (archival data), representing a pioneering application of such data in examining entrepreneurial orientation. By focusing on online freelancers – an emerging mode of work – the study provides an ideal context for conducting this investigation. It further extends the scope of entrepreneurship research by elucidating the role of culture in shaping entrepreneurial orientation within the dynamic environment of global freelancing platforms. This research directly addresses ongoing calls in the literature for deeper inquiry into the contextual factors influencing entrepreneurial orientation.