Human capital gains: How the investment and allocation of human capital affects the performance of high-technology initial public offering firms

This study explored the influence of top management team human capital on firm performance in 113 high technology initial public offering firms (IP0s). Hypotheses are derived from human capital theory and resource-based theory. This research presents results that are significant in several regards. First, they provide evidence for the strategic human resource management (SHRM) perspective, which suggests that the knowledge and skills of people affect firm outcomes. In general, human capital was found to predict firm performance. Second, the results show some evidence for the importance of human resource flexibility to the firm. Third, this research provided support for the resource-based view of the firm suggesting that internal resources and how they are coordinated are important for firm performance. Finally, the research provided implications for the investment and allocation of human capital in firms poised to grow.