Research and Interest Areas

• The CFO's role in organizations


• Digital transformation of the finance function


• Strategic capital market communication


• Value-based management systems

Courses Taught

• Corporate Governance in the Digital Age


• Management Accounting

Peer-Reviewed Publications

• Firk S.; Schmidt T.; Wolff M. (2019): Exploring Value-Based Management Sophistication: The Role of Potential Economic Benefits and Institutional Influence in: Contemporary Accounting Research Vol. 36 No. 1 pp. 418-450


• Firk S.; Schmidt T.; Wolff M. (2018): CFO emphasis on value-based management: Performance implications and the challenge of CFO succession in: Management Accounting Research forthcoming


• Firk S.; Maybuechen F.; Oehmichen J.; Wolff M. (2018): Value-based Management and Merger & Acquisition Returns: A Multi-level Contingency Model in: European Accounting Review forthcoming


• Hildebrandt B.; Hanelt A.; Firk S (2018): Sharing Yet Caring - Mitigating Moral Hazard in Access-Based Consumption through IS-Enabled Value Co-Capturing with Consumers in: Business & Information Systems Engineering Vol. 60 No.3 pp. 227-241


• Firk S.; Schrapp S.; Wolff M. (2016): Drivers of value creation - The role of value-based management and underlying institutions in: Management Accounting Research Vol. 33 No. 4 pp. 42-60


• Hildebrandt B.; Hanelt A.; Firk S.; Kolbe L. (2015): Entering the Digital Era - The Impact of Digital Technology-related M&As on Business Model Innovations of Automobile OEMs in: Proceedings of the 36th International Conference on Information Systems (ICIS 2015)

Practice-Oriented Publications

• Firk S.; Holst M.; Wolff M.(2020). Clawback Clauses as a Strategic Handicap? Examining the Impact of Clawback Clauses on Corporate Strategy


• Firk S.; Hennig J.; Wolff M. (2019): “The Value Creation Potential of Earnings Conference Calls” in: GoingPublic Vol. June pp.38-39


• Firk S.; Holst M.; Wolff M. (2019): Clawback Provisions: A Double-Edged Sword in: Controlling - Zeitschrift für erfolgsorientierte Unternehmenssteuerung Vol. 31 No. 2 pp. 34-40


• Firk S.; Wolff M. (2018): Value Orientation Can Pay Off in: Controlling & Management Review Vol. 62 No. 4 pp. 52-57


• Firk S.; Schmidt T.; Wolff M. (2016): Value-Oriented Corporate Management in Practice in: Handbuch Controlling ed. by W. Becker and P. Ulrich

Refereed Conference Proceedings

• 2019 – Annual Conference of the American Accounting Association (AAA) San Francisco (USA) - "Investor reactions to abnormal tone and the role of manager-specific linguistic context factors” (Firk S.; Hennig J.; Wolff M.)


• 2019 – ERMAC 2019 Summer School and Research Conference Vienna (Austria) - “Just wait and see? How to manage impressions around M&As” (Firk S.; Hennig J.)


• 2019 – Annual Conference of the Association of University Professors of Management (VHB) Rostock (Germany) - “Does the market value strategic career backgrounds of CFOs?” (Firk S.; Spogat D.; Verbeeten F.; Wolff M.)


• 2018 – 11th Conference on New Directions in Management Accounting Brussels (Belgium) - "Does the market value strategic backgrounds of CFOs" (Firk S.; Spogat D.; Verbeeten F.; Wolff M.)


• 2018 – Accounting Research Seminar of the Copenhagen Business School (CBS) Copenhagen (Denmark) - "Does the market value strategic backgrounds of CFOs" (Firk S.; Spogat D.; Verbeeten F.; Wolff M.)


• 2018 – Accounting Research Seminar of the Universities of Bern and Fribourg Fribourg (Switzerland) - "The Dark Side of Clawbacks: Clawback Provisions and a Firm’s Strategic Repertoire" (Firk S.; Holst M.; Wolff M..)


• 2018 – Annual Conference of the Academy of Management (AoM) Chicago (USA) - "CFO career prospect and M&A returns - An analysis of the S&P 500 (Firk S.; Richter S.)


• 2018 – Annual Conference of the Academy of Management (AoM) Chicago (USA) - "Market reactions to appointments of CFOs with strategic backgrounds" (Firk S.; Spogat D.; Verbeeten F.; Wolff M.)


• 2018 – Annual Conference of the American Accounting Association (AAA) Washington (USA) - "The interplay of CFOs and CEOs with regard to investment efficiency - A regulatory perspective" (Detzen N.; Firk S. Wolff M.)


• 2018 – Annual Conference of the American Accounting Association (AAA) Washington (USA) - "Market reactions to appointments of CFOs with strategic backgrounds" (Firk S.; Spogat D.; Verbeeten F.; Wolff M.)


• 2018 – Annual Conference of the European Accounting Association (EAA) Milan (Italy) - "What drives sophisticated environmental performance measurement systems? An empirical investigation of antecedents and its outcomes" (Coskun H.; Firk S.; Wolff M.)


• 2018 – Annual Conference of the European Accounting Association (EAA) Milan (Italy) - "Market reactions to appointments of CFOs with strategic backgrounds" (Firk S.; Spogat D.; Verbeeten F.; Wolff M.)


• 2018 – Annual Conference of the European Accounting Association (EAA) Milan (Italy) - "CFO career prospect and M&A returns - An analysis of the S&P 500 (Firk S.; Richter S.)


• 2018 – Annual Conference of the European Accounting Association (EAA) Milan (Italy) - "The interplay of CFOs and CEOs with regard to investment efficiency - A regulatory perspective" (Detzen N.; Firk S. Wolff M.)


• 2018 – Annual Conference of the Association of University Professors of Management (VHB) Magdeburg (Germany) - "Does value-based management support managerial decision-making? - An analysis of divestiture decisions" (Firk S.; Richter S.; Wolff M.)


• 2018 – Annual Conference of the Association of University Professors of Management (VHB) Magdeburg (Germany) - "Balanced Information composition in conference calls and the cost of capital" (Firk S.; Hennig J.; Wolff M.)


• 2018 – Accounting Research Seminar of the University of Groningen Groningen (Netherlands) - "The interplay of CFOs and CEOs with regard to investment efficiency - A regulatory perspective" (Detzen N.; Firk S. Wolff M.)


• 2018 – Annual Conference for Management Accounting Research (ACMAR) Vallendar (Germany) - "CFO career prospect and M&A - An analysis of the S&P 500" (Firk S.; Richter S.; Wolff M.)


• 2018 – Annual Conference for Management Accounting Research (ACMAR) Vallendar (Germany) - "The interplay of CFOs and CEOs with regard to investment efficiency - A regulatory perspective" (Detzen N.; Firk S. Wolff M.)


• 2017 – Annual Conference of the American Accounting Association (AAA) San Diego (USA) - "Value-based management's promise to support managerial decision making - An analysis of divestiture decisions" (Firk S.; Richter S.; Wolff M.)


• 2017 – Annual Conference of the American Accounting Association (AAA) San Diego (USA) - "Information provision in conference calls and the cost of capital: An analyst-based perspective" (Firk S.; Hennig J.; Wolff M.)


• 2017 – Annual Conference of the Academy of Management (AoM) Atlanta (USA) - "What drives CSR sophistication? The role of intra- and extra-organizational pressure" (Coskun H.; Firk S.)


• 2017 – Annual Conference of the Academy of Management (AoM) Atlanta (USA) - "Value-based management's promise to support managerial decision making - An analysis of divestiture decisions" (Firk S.; Richter S.; Wolff M.)


• 2017 – ERMAC 2017 Summer School Vienna (Austria) - "The good and the bad cop? A regulatory focus perspective on the CFO-CEO relation" (Firk S. Kruse N.; Wolff; M.)


• 2017 – Annual Conference of the European Accounting Association (EAA) Valencia (Spain) - "Value-based management's promise to support managerial decision making - An analysis of divestiture decisions" (Firk S.; Richter S.; Wolff M.)


• 2017 – Annual Conference of the European Accounting Association (EAA) Valencia (Spain) - "Information provision in conference calls and the cost of capital: An analyst-based perspective" (Firk S.; Hennig J.; Wolff M.)


• 2017 – Annual Conference for Management Accounting Research (ACMAR) Vallendar (Germany) - Value-based management's promise to support managerial decision making - An analysis of divestiture decisions (Firk S.; Richter S.; Wolff M.)


• 2017 – Seminar of the Amsterdam Research Centers in Accounting (ARCA) Amsterdam (Netherlands) - Exploring Value-Based Management Sophistication - The Role of Organizational Demand in Different Institutional Environments (Firk S.; Schmidt T.; Wolff M.)


• 2016 – Annual Conference of the American Accounting Association (AAA) New York (USA) - Think before you speak - The effect of conference call style on the cost of equity capital (Firk S.; Hennig J.; Wolff M.)


• 2016 – Annual Conference of the American Accounting Association (AAA) New York (USA) - Transforming promise into reality - Antecedents and performance implications of CFO commitment to Value-based Management (Firk S.; Schmidt T.; Wolff M.)


• 2016 – Annual Conference of the Academy of Management (AoM) Anaheim (USA) - Think before you speak - The effect of conference call style on the cost of equity capital" (Firk S.; Hennig J.; Wolff M.)


• 2016 – Annual Conference of the Academy of Management (AoM) Anaheim (USA) - Transforming promise into reality - Antecedents and performance implications of CFO commitment to Value-based Management (Firk S.; Schmidt T.; Wolff M.)


• 2016 – Annual Conference of the Academy of Management (AoM) Anaheim (USA) - Value-Based Management and M&A Decisions: A Multi-Level Contingency Model (Firk S.; Maybuechen F.; Wolff M.)


• 2016 – Doctoral Symposium of the Accounting & Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand (AFAANZ) Gold Coast (Australia)* - Transforming promise into reality - Antecedents and perfromance implications of CFO commitment to Value-based Management (Firk S.; Schmidt T.; Wolff M.)


• 2016 – Annual Conference of the European Accounting Association (EAA) Maastricht (Netherlands) - Transforming promise into reality - Antecedents and perfromance implications of CFO commitment to Value-based Management (Firk S.; Schmidt T.; Wolff M.)


• 2016 – Doctoral Symposium of the European Accounting Association (EAA) Maastricht (Netherlands) - Value-Based Management and M&A Decisions: A Multi-Level Contingency Model (Firk S.; Maybuechen F.; Wolff M.)


• 2015 – International Conference on Information Systems (ICIS) Forth Worth (USA) - Entering the Digital Era - The Impact of Digital Technology-related M&As on Business Model Innovations of Automobile OEMs (Hildebrandt B.; Hanelt A.; Firk S.; Kolbe L.)


• 2015 – Annual Conference of the Academy of Management (AoM) Vancouver (Canada) - Value-based Management Sophistication in Europe - Organizational fit under institutional differences (Firk S.; Schmidt T.; Wolff M.)


• 2015 – Annual Conference of the Association of University Professors of Management (VHB) Vienna (Austria) - When does Value Based Management pay off? - M&A decisions in the light of internal and external agency conflicts (Firk S.; Maybuechen F.; Wolff M.)


• 2015 – Annual Conference of the European Accounting Association (EAA) Glasgow (Scotland) - Value-based Management Sophistication in Europe - Organizational fit under institutional differences" (Firk S.; Schmidt T.; Wolff M.)


• 2014 – Annual Conference of the Academy of Management (AoM) Philadelphia (USA) - Performance effects of value-based managements systems under institutional complexity(Firk S.; Schrapp S.; Wolff M.)


• 2014 – Annual Conference of the Association of University Professors of Management (VHB) Leipzig - Performance effects of value-based managements systems under institutional complexity (Firk S.; Schrapp S.; Wolff M.)


• 2014 – Annual Conference of the European Management Association (EURAM) Valencia (Spain) - Drivers of value creation - The role of value-based management and underlying institutions (Firk S.; Schrapp S.; Wolff M.)

* Selected Representative of the EAA