TMT academic-field dispersion and R&D intensity in high-technology firms: a bounded polymathic perspective

Drawing on upper echelons and complexity theories, this study examines the nonlinear association between top management team (TMT) academic-field dispersion and R&D intensity, an observable indicator of innovation-oriented resource allocation. A bounded polymathic perspective provides a complementary interpretive lens, suggesting that academic-field breadth may support R&D allocation when disciplinary variety remains coordinable but become less beneficial as coordination demands intensify. Using longitudinal data from Taiwan Technology Index firms from 2011 to 2022 and an entropy-based measure of executives’ academic disciplines, the findings reveal an inverted U-shaped relationship between academic-field dispersion and R&D intensity. Moderate dispersion is associated with higher R&D intensity, whereas excessive dispersion is associated with lower R&D intensity. The relationship is further moderated by investment opportunity and board technological expertise. The findings clarify the contingent value of academic-field breadth for innovation-oriented resource allocation in high-technology firms.