Organizational Capital and the Effects of Technology Shocks on the Characteristics of Earnings

The objective of this study is to hypothesize and test the effects that the introduction of new productive technologies into an an economy have on the characteristics of earnings. To do this, I leverage theory from Eisfeldt and Papanikolaou (2013) that describes how economy-wide technology shocks affect the value of organizational capital, an important intangible asset. Because organizational capital is largely unrecognized in financial statements, I hypothesize that periods of technology shock are associated with lower earnings timeliness, particularly for firms with more organizational capital. I also hypothesize and find that technology shocks are associated with more subsequent goodwill impairment and restructuring, and that these associations are mediated by the quantity or efficiency of the firm's organizational capital. Findings demonstrate how investment in organizational capital creates exposure to aggregate technology shocks, the dynamics of which affect earnings quality