Narcissistic CFOs With Big Signatures Are More Prone To Questionable Financial Reporting

Wary of the veracity of a company’s latest earnings report? Its CFO’s signature may provide clues into just how accurate it is.

A recent study connects the dots between CFO narcissism, as measured by signature size, and financial reporting outcomes. Researchers found qualities of narcissism in CFOs to be associated with “more earnings management, less timely loss recognition, weaker internal controls, and higher probability of restatements.”

In other words, the more narcissistic the CFO, the greater the likelihood financial reporting will be a bit fishy.

Narcissistic CFOs And The Signature Connection

A link between signature size and narcissism has long been established in psychology – studies dating back to the 1970s have...