New Research by Tomasz Obloj Accepted in the Strategic Management Journal

Tomasz Obloj, Associate Professor of the Strategy and Business Policy Department at HEC Paris, has his latest paper accepted for publication in the Strategic Management Journal.

Tomasz Obloj’s recent research, titled "What Do Multiple Objectives Really Mean For Performance? Empirical Evidence From the French Manufacturing Sector", is forthcoming in the Strategic Management Journal. The Strategic Management Journal (SMJ) is the world’s leading mass impact journal for research in strategic management. The SMJ publishes papers that are selected through a rigorous double-blind review process. 

In this academic paper co-authored with Metin Sengul of Boston College’s Carroll School of Management, the two researchers explore the performance consequences of a simultaneous pursuit of multiple objectives by companies and other organizations.

Taking advantage of a unique dataset covering both the objectives pursued and performance outcomes on these metrics, they tested the hypothesis that is the cornerstone of multiple objective theory: performance on a given metric increases when it is pursued as an objective; but it decreases with the number of other objectives pursued simultaneously. They found that this hypothesis holds for most objectives, but not for all. 

The researchers further unpack the link between multiplicity of objectives and performance, investigating the moderating effects of organization design choices. They found that multiple objectives impose a cost on organizations, but also provide a benefit of alleviating tradeoffs in achieving higher performance in multiple dimensions.

"It is interesting to find that face-to-face management meetings alleviate the cost of organizational objective multiplicity—given where we are now with online meetings. There is a growing literature on institutional logic multiplicity—but it is not yet connected to organizational performance—so your work is inspirational to institutional theory."

Patricia Thornton, Distinguished Visiting Professor at HEC Paris, from Texas A&M University and Stanford University

"This is a fundamental piece that I think will become an instant classic. It lies at the core of the redefinition of our discipline."

Rodolphe Durand, Joly Family Purposeful Leadership Chair Professor, Founder and Academic Director of the Society and Organizations Institute (S&O)