Distributing Value to Stakeholders across Industries: Influences of Power and Strategic Importance

Objective: to investigate how stakeholder power and strategic importance influence value distribution to stakeholders in a U.S. liberal market economy, and to assess how this relationship varies across different industries. Methods: we conducted a content analysis and ordinary least squares regression on 755 IPO prospectuses from publicly traded American companies across seven industries between 2003 and 2019. Results: our findings indicate that strategic importance exerts a greater influence on value distribution than power. However, the impact of these factors varies by industry: strategic importance is more influential in technology, for example, whereas power has limited influence in finance. Industries such as energy and transportation display distinct patterns compared to manufacturing and life sciences. Conclusions: in the U.S. liberal market economy, companies prioritize stakeholders who contribute strategically to value creation over those who merely hold power, but this prioritization varies by industry. For managers and stakeholders, the results provide reflections on how to effectively involve and prioritize stakeholders, creating advantages and aligning with the specific needs of each industry. For literature, the study contributes by analyzing different industries and their specificities.