A co-evolutionary analysis of corporate performance: From Fiat to Fiat Chrysler Automobiles

Abstract

ABSTRACT How do environmentally-driven and firm-specific factors influence business innovation and adaptation? How can the analysis of their co-evolutionary relationship help explain firm survival or failure over time? To address these key questions, this article focuses on the study regarding the 20-year performance (1997–2017) of the Fiat (later Fiat Chrysler Automobiles) group in the automobile industry. The analysis primarily deals with three historical phases: crisis (1997–2002), turnaround (2003–2007), and expansion (2008–2017). As a key contribution, the study combines elaborations from a robust dataset comprising both industry characteristics and executive team features, with historical events both at the environmental and the firm’s strategy levels. Results suggest that when executive team diversity and a wide breadth of product portfolio are concurrently present, they positively affect corporate performance.