An Empirical Examination of Leader Human Capital Composition and Investment Behaviour in Corporate Venture Capital

Abstract

This thesis investigates the leaders of corporate venture capital units and examines their corresponding investment behavior. Utilizing theories on strategic human capital, micro-foundations, and the resourcebased view, we analyze the relationships between the professional and educational backgrounds of individual CVC leaders and their respective investment behavior. Correspondingly, this thesis highlights micro-level analysis, emphasizing the human capital nested in the upper echelons of CVC units. The objective of this research is to theoretically develop and empirically examine the associations between various aspects of human capital and investment behavior. To this purpose, we collect demographic data on 894 CVC leaders from 1990-2022 and subsequently align them with their corresponding CVC-unit, parent corporation, and the respective individual investments they have overseen. The results of this study exhibit that: i) The educational and professional backgrounds of CVC leaders are highly diverse. ii) Individual leaders’ human capital is based on heterogeneous knowledge, skills, and abilities, may manifest as different types of human capital resources, and help explain variances in investment behavior and individual investment outcomes. iii) Specific human capital exhibited a greater propensity to predict investment behavior and selection relative to general human capital. The results suggest that the human capital of CVC leaders is associated with variance in individual’s investment behavior and investment outcomes. The results and limitations presented in this thesis also highlight the underlying complexities pertaining to the microfoundations of investment behavior and suggest several avenues for future research.