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The current debate concerning the transformation of work, new management practices and flexibility in employment, has proved to be inadequate in its lack of attention given to the public sector. The wide ranging policies which have been proposed and/or implemented in the public sector have tended to be ignored, despite their potential for change being perhaps greater than those in the private sector, ie. the introduction of market concepts and the loss of security of employment. Management reorganisation, including financial devolution, has been linked to flexible work practices in a number of areas of the public service sector, but there has been little attempt to analyse these in terms of workplace industrial relations.

The purpose of this paper is to analyze the factors that make Beirut a fashion hub by studying the characteristics of creativity and the role of the different stakeholders in setting an environment that encourages creativity in Beirut.

The methodology of this research is based on a literature review and information collected through semi-structured interviews with the different stakeholders of the sector.

The research reveals three results. First, this dynamic fashion design in Beirut is explained by the international success of some Lebanese fashion designers. Second, as there is an absence of any form of governmental intervention, the development of the sector is totally based on private business initiatives. Third, the research demonstrates the importance of the local culture, knowledge exchanges and lifestyle in shaping creativity and designers’ careers in Beirut.

These findings contribute to the clarification and critical analysis of the current state of fashion design in Beirut, which would have several policy implications.

The purpose of this study is to examine the role of chief financial officers’ (CFOs’) gender in financial risk taking of 58 US companies along with the impact of having women board members.

Using a panel data of 58 selected S&P 500 companies during the period 2012-2016, this paper determines whether the gender of CFOs and having women board members play a role in risk-taking behavior of firms.

Firms led by female CFOs are smaller in size with lower net income and net revenue. The panel data analysis shows that the impact of female CFOs on firms’ financial risk is mixed, depending on risk measures used, whereas increasing female board members reduces that risk.

The data used is limited to 58 S&P 500 companies, and two of the three risk-taking measures used in the study, specifically investment in property, plant and equipment (PPE) and debt/equity ratio, may not be applicable to some industries.

The findings provide mixed evidence of risk aversion by females in executive and leadership positions, depending on the measures used and the management responsibilities they undertake (CFO versus board member) with support for the glass cliff phenomenon in which females may be leading financially precarious organizations.

Female CFOs are found to be leading relatively smaller and financially poor-performing firms compared with the male CFO-led firms, thereby giving support to the glass cliff arguments.

The paper examines the role of CFOs’ gender and board diversity in risk taking as measured by the investment in PPE, debt/equity ratio and stock return volatility.