Observational study reveals partisan loyalty primarily drives public hospital CEO turnover regardless of competence, suggesting persistent patronage despite meritocratic reforms.
Key Points
To examine how formal politicization, partisan loyalty, and managerial competence influence the turnover and dismissal risk of public hospital chief executive officers.
Analyzed an observational dataset of 138 CEOs across 79 Italian public hospitals between 2017 and 2021.
Evaluated the relative associations of partisan alignment, managerial human capital, and organizational performance with CEO exit likelihood.
Partisan loyalty is the primary driver of executive turnover, exerting a stronger effect than managerial competence.
Political stability significantly reduces CEO dismissal risk, persisting even during periods of weak organizational performance or limited executive human capital.