Benefits of Having a Female CFO
58 Pages Posted: 16 Jul 2021 Last revised: 15 Feb 2022
Date Written: July 14, 2021
Abstract
We examine gender differences in the language of CFOs who participate in quarterly earnings calls. Female executives are more concise and less optimistic, are clearer, use fewer idioms or clichés, and provide more numbers in their speech. These differences are particularly strong in the more spontaneous Questions and Answers (QA) section of the calls and are reflected in stronger market and analyst reactions. Gender differences seem to be associated with CFO overconfidence.
Keywords: gender, conference calls, textual analysis, euphemisms, abnormal returns
JEL Classification: G10, G14, J16, M14, M41
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation