Research

Corporate governance, family business and socioemotional wealth, ownership structure and boards, business groups, banking, and tourism/hospitality firm finance.

Current research lines

Corporate governance and boards — director independence, compensation, and monitoring
Family business and socioemotional wealth
Ownership structure, business groups, and internationalization
Banking and financial intermediary governance
Tourism and hospitality firm finance and innovation

Selected publications

Newest first. This list is drawn directly from CV_ENG_F.pdf and CVN — full working papers, books, and funded projects follow below.

2026 — Aguilera, R.V.; Crespí-Cladera, R.; Martín-Oliver, A.; Pascual-Fuster, B. "A Property Rights Theory of Business Groups: Explaining Their Ubiquity around the Globe." Journal of Management Studies, forthcoming (accepted September 2026).
2025 — Abella, D.; Martínez, J.H.; Mazzoli, M.; Le Corre, T.; Migozzi, J.; Alonso-Paulí, E.; Crespí-Cladera, R.; Louail, T.; Ramasco, J.J. "Exploring the Spatial Segmentation of Housing Markets from Online Listings." EPJ Data Science, 14, 34. DOI
2024 — Aguilera, R.V.; Crespí-Cladera, R.; Martín-Oliver, A.; Pascual-Fuster, B. "Ownership, Control, and Productivity: Family Firms in Comparative Perspective." Journal of Management.
2024 — Pascual-Fuster, B.; Federo, R.; Crespí-Cladera, R.; Gabaldón, P. "The Second Glass Ceiling: The Dark Side of Women Recategorization in Corporate Boards." Gender, Work & Organization, 32(3), 1018–1043. DOI
2023 — Aguilera, R.V.; Federo, R.; Pascual-Fuster, B.; Crespí-Cladera, R. "The Corporate Governance of Business Groups: What We Know and What Lies Ahead." Annals of Corporate Governance, 7(3), 152–251.
2022 — Pascual-Fuster, B.; Crespí-Cladera, R. "Optimal Board Independence with Gray Independent Directors." BRQ Business Research Quarterly, 25(2), 193–209. DOI
2021 — Crespí-Cladera, R.; Martín-Oliver, A.; Pascual-Fuster, B. "Financial Distress in the Hospitality Industry During the Covid-19 Disaster." Tourism Management.
2020 — Aguilera, R.V.; Crespí-Cladera, R.; Infantes, P.M.; Pascual-Fuster, B. "Business Groups and Internationalization: Effective Identification and Future Agenda." Journal of World Business, 55(4). DOI
2019 — Aguilera, R.V.; Crespí-Cladera, R.; Kabbach de Castro, L.R. "Corporate Governance in Latin America: Towards Shareholder Democracy." AIB Insights, 19(2), 13–17.
2019 — Infantes-Sánchez, P.M.; Pascual-Fuster, B.; Crespí, R. "Interlocking Directorates within Business Groups: Information Matters!" Academy of Management Proceedings.
2018 — Pascual-Fuster, B.; Crespí-Cladera, R. "Politicians in the Boardroom: Is It a Convenient Burden?" Corporate Governance: An International Review, 26(6). DOI
2018 — Crespí-Cladera, R.; Pascual-Fuster, B. "Diversidad de género y compensación en los consejos de administración." Economistas, June 2018, pp. 25–32.
2017 — Kabbach de Castro, L.R.; Aguilera, R.V.; Crespí-Cladera, R. "Family Firms and Compliance: Reconciling the Conflicting Predictions Within the Socioemotional Wealth Perspective." Family Business Review, 30(2), 137–159. DOI
2016 — Desender, K.; Aguilera, R.V.; Crespí-Cladera, R.; Lopezpuertas-Lamy, M. "A Clash of Governance Logics: Foreign Ownership and Board Monitoring." Strategic Management Journal, 37(2), 349–369. DOI
2016 — Aguilera, R.V.; Crespí-Cladera, R. "Global Corporate Governance: On the Relevance of Firms' Ownership Structure." Journal of World Business, 51(1), 50–57.
2015 — Crespí-Cladera, R.; Martín-Oliver, A. "Do Family Firms Have Better Access to External Finance During Crises?" Corporate Governance: An International Review, 23(3), 249–265.
2015 — Crespí-Cladera, R.; Pascual-Fuster, B. "Executive Directors' Pay and Networks: The Influence of Ownership Structure." Journal of Accounting and Public Policy, 34(2), 175–203.
2014 — Crespí-Cladera, R.; Pascual-Fuster, B. "Does the Independence of Independent Directors Matter?" Journal of Corporate Finance, 28, 116–134. Special issue: "Inside the Boardroom."
2013 — Desender, K.; Aguilera, R.V.; Crespí-Cladera, R.; García-Cestona, M.A. "When Does Ownership Matter? Board Characteristics and Behavior." Strategic Management Journal, 34(7), 823–842.
2012 — Aguilera, R.V.; Crespí-Cladera, R. "Firm Family Firms: Current Debates of Corporate Governance in Family Firms." Journal of Family Business Strategy, 3, 66–69.
2010 — Crespí-Cladera, R.; Renneboog, L. "Is Institutional Shareholder Activism New? Evidence from UK Shareholder Coalitions in the Pre-Cadbury Era." Corporate Governance: An International Review, 18(4), 247–295.
2009 — Crespí-Cladera, R.; Pascual-Fuster, B. "Corporate Governance Practices of Spanish Listed Banks 2004–2007." Revista de Estabilidad Financiera, Banco de España, 16, 80–110.
2005 — Orfila-Sintes, F.; Crespí-Cladera, R.; Martínez-Ros, E. "Innovation Activity in the Hotel Industry: Evidence from Balearic Islands." Tourism Management, 26(6), 851–865.
2004 — Crespí-Cladera, R.; García-Cestona, M.A.; Salas, V. "Governance Mechanisms in Spanish Banks. Does Ownership Matter?" Journal of Banking & Finance, 28(10), 2311–2330.
2003 — Crespí-Cladera, R.; Gispert, C. "Total Board Compensation, Governance and Performance of Spanish Listed Companies." Labour: Review of Labour Economics and Industrial Relations, 17(1), 103–126.
2002 — Crespí-Cladera, R.; Gispert, C. "Causes and Consequences of Block Increases: Evidence from Spanish Non-Financial Firms." Journal of Management and Governance, 6, 235–254.

Earlier working papers list (1993–2001) omitted here for length — full detail available in the downloadable CV.

Current working papers

"Do Business Groups Use Internal Labor Markets for Tunneling?" — with Magí Trobat-Fullana, Bartolomé Pascual-Fuster. Presented at the 22nd WCGI, Marburg (Sept 2023)
"The Grand Challenge of the Glass Ceiling: A Social Psychological Perspective" / "Breaking the Glass Ceiling: A Social Psychological Perspective on Board Gender Diversity" — with Bartolomé Pascual-Fuster, Ryan Federo. Presented at the 21st WCGI, Copenhagen (2022) and the 8th ICGS Conference, Miami (Nov 2022, Best Paper Nominee)
"Internationalization of Family Businesses in the Global South: A Comparative Analysis with the Global North" — with Ruth V. Aguilera, Kimberly Eddleston, Alfredo Martín-Oliver. Presented at IFERA 2025, Zadar
"Heroes or Villains? Family Firms, Wage Inequality, and the Global South-North Divide" — with Ruth V. Aguilera, Kimberly Eddleston, Alfredo Martín-Oliver. Presented at the JIBS Special Issue Paper Development Workshop, Manchester (June 2026), and the 12th Annual ICGS Conference, HEC Montréal (Oct 2026)

Books & book chapters

Crespí-Cladera, R.; Tekin, A. "The Governance of Family Business Groups." In Research Handbook on Family Business Governance, eds. Ruth V. Aguilera, Mario Daniele Amore, Morten Bennedsen, Samuele Murtinu & Marc Van Essen. Edward Elgar Publishing, forthcoming (accepted 2026).
Crespí-Cladera, R.; Garcés-Galdeano, L. "La estructura y el gobierno corporativo de la empresa familiar" (Chapter II). In Fundamentos de la empresa familiar, Instituto de la Empresa Familiar. Editorial Aranzadi, 2025, 450 pp. ISBN 978-84-10308-45-9.
Crespí-Cladera, R.; Bru, L. "Board Governance of Family Firms and Business Groups with a Unique Regional Dataset." In The Modern Firm, Corporate Governance and Investment, eds. Per-Olof Bjuggren & Dennis C. Mueller. Edward Elgar, 2009, pp. 292–322.
Crespí-Cladera, R.; Orfila-Sintes, F. "Environmental Management Innovation: Evidence from the Balearic Hotel Industry." In Corporate Environmental Strategy and Competitive Advantage, eds. Sanjay Sharma & J.A. Aragón-Correa. Edward Elgar, 2005.
Crespí-Cladera, R. "Corporate Governance and Economic Performance: Spain." In Corporate Governance and Economic Performance, ed. Klaus Gugler. Oxford University Press, 2001.
Crespí-Cladera, R.; García-Cestona, M.A. "Ownership and Control of the Spanish Listed Firms." In The Control of Corporate Europe, eds. F. Barca & M. Becht. Oxford University Press, 2001.
Crespí-Cladera, R.; Gispert, C.; Renneboog, L. "Cash-based Executive Compensation in Spain and the UK." In Convergence and Diversity in Corporate Governance Regimes and Capital Markets, eds. J. McCahery, P. Moerland, T. Raaijmakers & L. Renneboog. Oxford University Press, 2002.

Conferences & workshops

Newest first. Rafel is a standing member of the Program/Organizing Committee of the Workshop on Corporate Governance and Investment (WCGI) — see Academic Service.

Oct 2026 — 12th Annual ICGS Conference, "Purposeful Governance in a Changing World," HEC Montréal — track co-chair + presenter, "Heroes or Villains? Family Firms, Wage Inequality, and the Global South-North Divide" (w/ Aguilera, Eddleston, Martín-Oliver)
Sept 2026 — 25th WCGI, BMI Executive Institute, Vilnius, Lithuania — program committee, session chair (CEOs and Executives), discussant
June 2026 — JIBS Special Issue Paper Development Workshop, Manchester Metropolitan University — presenter, "Heroes or Villains?"
June 2026 — XXXV ACEDE Congress, Santander — discussant
June 2026 — XX DEMO Workshop, UAB, Barcelona — discussant
June 2026 — IFERA Annual Conference, Naples — attendee
Feb 2026 — JMS Special Issue Paper Development Workshop, Florida International University, Miami — presenter, "Explaining the Ubiquity of Business Groups around the Globe"
Oct 2025 — 11th ICGS Conference, University of Manchester — session chair + presenter, "Property Rights and Firm Performance: State Ownership or Institutional Strength?"
Sept 2025 — 24th WCGI, University of Vaasa, Finland
June 2025 — Family Business Research Workshop, University of Zagreb — presenter
June 2025 — IFERA Annual Conference, Zadar, Croatia — presenter + panelist ("Publishing Horror Stories" session)
June 2025 — XIX DEMO Workshop, UAB, Barcelona — session chair
May 2025 — 7th Greater Boston Corporate Governance Workshop, Northeastern University — presenter
Mar–Apr 2025 — EURAM Early Career Colloquium, UIB, Palma — local organizer/host
Sept 2024 — 23rd WCGI, University of Aberdeen — presenter, "The Corporate Governance of Family Firms"
July 2024 — Academy of International Business (AIB) Annual Meeting, Seoul — attendee
June 2024 — IFERA Annual Conference, Lisbon — attendee
June 2024 — XVIII DEMO Workshop, UAB, Barcelona — discussant
Oct 2023 — ICGS Conference, Sustainable Corporate Governance, IE University, Madrid — participant
Sept 2023 — 22nd WCGI, Marburg, Germany — presenter, discussant, session chair
Nov 2022 — 8th Annual ICGS Conference, "Corporate Governance in a Digital Era," University of Miami — presenter, Best Paper Nominee, "Breaking the Glass Ceiling: A Social Psychological Perspective on Board Gender Diversity" (w/ Pascual-Fuster, Federo)
June 2022 — XVI DEMO Workshop, UAB, Barcelona — discussant
June 2022 — Finance Workshop Madrid, honoring Prof. Gonzalo Rubio, UC3M — attendee
Sept 2022 — 21st WCGI, Copenhagen Business School — presenter, "The Grand Challenge of the Glass Ceiling" (w/ Pascual-Fuster, Federo)
Feb 2022 — Academy of Management Review Idea Development Workshop, ESADE, Barcelona — participant
Nov 2021 — AINVEF family-business research seminar, UPV/EHU, Bilbao — plenary key-speaker (see Academic Service)
Oct 2021 — 7th Annual ICGS Conference, "Corporate Governance in Times of Disruption," University of Groningen — attendee
Sept 2021 — "Jornadas Empresa, Economía y Sociedad," Universidad de Zaragoza — attendee (w/ Alfredo Martín-Oliver)
Feb 2021 — REFCA Special Issue Workshop on European Corporate Governance — discussant
Oct 2018 — 4th ICGS Annual Conference, "Navigating Corporate Governance in Emerging Markets," Fudan University, Shanghai — presenter, two papers: "Interlocking Directors Inside Business Groups" (w/ Paula Infantes, Pascual-Fuster) and "Gender Diversity in the Boardroom: The Contribution of Women Directors" (w/ Pascual-Fuster)
June 2018 — EURAM Annual Conference, Reykjavík, Iceland — attendee

Attended but unconfirmed role/paper (travel records only, no program or certificate found): a family-business congress in Cáceres (Oct 2022) and the XXIV Congreso Nacional de la Empresa Familiar, Pamplona (Oct 2021).

Funded research projects (principal investigator)

Continuous run of competitive-funding PI status since 1997, per official SIRA record. Current/recent first.

2024–2027 — Gobierno corporativo de derechos de propiedad en grupos empresariales (GoverBIGRU). PID2023-148086NB-C21. €187,500. With Alfredo Martín-Oliver; 18 researchers.
2025–2027 — Digitalization of livestock-farming sustainability activities, Balearic Islands. MEPRO 69208/2025, Conselleria d'Agricultura, Pesca i Alimentació (CAIB). €724,745. Sole PI.
2023–2024 — Sustainable animal feed for Balearic livestock farms. MEPRO 7447/2023, CAIB. €479,957. Sole PI.
2021–2024 — Grupos de Empresas: Relevancia de las estructuras de propiedad (BIGRU). PID2020-115982RB-C21. €74,197. With Bartolomé Pascual-Fuster; 17 researchers.
2020–2022 — Influencia del nuevo modelo de alquiler turístico sobre el alquiler residencial. PRD2018/43, Conselleria d'Educació i Universitat (CAIB). €105,700.
2018–2021 — Business strategy and competitiveness: sustainable models. ECO2017-86305-C4-1-R, joint with UAB, Universidad de Zaragoza, UPNA. €44,000.
2014–2017 — Firm competitiveness: innovation and internal organization. ECO2013-48496-C4-1-R, coordinated with UAB, UPNA, Universidad de Zaragoza. €53,240.
2010–2013 — Impact of interaction of stakeholders on firm competitiveness. ECO2010-21393-C04-02. €79,860.
2007–2010 — Internal organization, corporate governance practices and family control (FOGPFC). SEJ2007-67895-C04-03/ECON. €169,763; 16 researchers.
2004–2007 — Corporate governance, incentive structure and markets efficiency (GEEIEM). SEJ2004-07530-C04-04. €115,460; 13 researchers.
2004–2025 — Founding/Director, Banca March Family Business Chair (29 Apr 2004 – 20 Mar 2025). Total funding €717,000 over the period.