Search results for "board"
showing 10 items of 308 documents
ICT-driven disruptive innovation nurtures un-captured GDP : Harnessing women's potential as untapped resources
2017
The harnessing of untapped resources has become essential for inclusive growth in digital economies particularly as developed economies continue to age demographically. The harnessing of women's potential is an urgent subject in this context, and successive initiatives have been flourishing in many countries. However, given the institutional complexity of the issue, as well as considerable variety across nations, uniformed non-systematic approaches are hardly satisfactory in achieving a timely solution. Against this back drop, this paper analyzed a new information communication technology (ICT)-driven disruptive innovation that may nurture un-captured GDP by harnessing untapped resources su…
Boards of directors: composition and effects on the performance of the firm
2018
This paper analyses the structure of boards of directors and its impact on business performance, which is approximated by economic profitability and the Tobin’s Q ratio. We focus on three basic aspects of boards that have been reviewed in the recent reform of the Good Governance Code: the size of boards, their independence and their diversity. For the study of diversity, we use an index that integrates not only the gender of board members, but also their age and nationality, since these are factors that can influence the knowledge, experience and skills of the directors. The results confirm a high degree of compliance with the recommendations of the Good Governance Code, and suggest that th…
Ownership, Board Compensation and Company Performance in Sub-Saharan African Countries
2013
In countries with weak institutions, board governance becomes more important. This study uses a unique dataset from listed sub-Saharan African companies to examine the relationship between ownership composition and board compensation. It further analyses the association between board compensation and company performance. The findings indicate that board ownership and chief executive officer ownership are positively associated, whereas state ownership and concentrated ownership are negatively associated with board compensation. There is no evidence of a significant association between chairperson ownership or foreign ownership and board compensation. Finally, there is a negative but not sig…
Influence of board of directors on firm performance: Analysis of family and non-family firms
2015
This article analyses how board structure can affect both financial and social performance, comparing family and non-family firms. Our theoretical framework is based on the integration of the agency theory, traditionally used in the analysis of the impact of the board on the firm's financial performance, with the stakeholder theory, which is more appropriate in the analysis of the social aspects of the firm. Three main aspects are addressed: the analysis of the firm's social performance; the integration of agency theory with stakeholder theory; and the study of the specific characteristics of family firms' boards. The research confirms that neither the agency theory nor the stakeholder theo…
The monitoring role of female directors over accounting quality
2017
Recent research in accounting suggests female directors exert more stringent monitoring over the financial reporting process than their male counterparts. However, an emerging literature in finance and economics provides mixed findings and questions whether females in leadership roles significantly differ from their male counterparts. Building on this literature, we re-examine the link between the presence of female directors, gender biases, and financial statements quality. Using a large sample of UK firms we find that a larger percentage of women among independent directors is significantly associated with lower earnings management practices. However, we show that this relation disappears…
The board of directors and dividenc policy: the effect of gender diversity
2015
In this article, we aim to study the impact on dividends policy of gender diversity on the board of directors (hereinafter BD). We hypothesize that the proportion of women directors, the proportion of independent, institutional, and executive female directors, and the percentage of shares held by female directors on BD, have an impact on the dividends policy of Spanish companies. Our findings, analyzing the whole sample, show that the proportion of female directors and shares held by female directors are positively associated with dividend payout, while the percentage of institutional female directors has a negative impact. The percentage of independent and executive female directors has no…
Resistance to Change in the Corporate Elite
2017
In this empirical study, we investigate the variation in firms’ response to institutional pressure for gender-balanced boards, focusing specifically on the preservation of prevailing practices of director selection and its impact on the representation of women on the board of directors. Using 8 years of data from publicly listed Nordic corporations, we show societal pressure to be one of the determinants of female directorship. Moreover, in some corporations, the director selection process may work to maintain “a traditional type of board”. In such boards, demographic diversity among male members appears to be associated with a lower share of female directors, although we cannot establish w…
Female Institutional Directors on Boards and Firm Value
2016
The aim of this research is to examine what impact female institutional directors on boards have on corporate performance. Previous research shows that institutional female directors cannot be considered as a homogeneous group since they represent investors who may or may not maintain business relations with the companies on whose corporate boards they sit. Thus, it is not only the effect of female institutional directors as a whole on firm value that has been analysed, but also the impact of pressure-resistant female directors, who represent institutional investors (investment, pension and mutual funds) that only invest in the company, and do not maintain a business relation with the firm.…
Globalization of Monitoring Practices: The Case of American Influences on the Dismissal Risk of European CEOs
2013
Accepted version of an article from the Journal of Economics and Business This study examines globalization of monitoring practices by focusing on how American (U.S.) influences on European firms impact the dismissal risk for these firms' CEOs. Specifically, we argue that the stronger short term orientation of the American corporate governance system increase the dismissal performance sensitivity faced by European CEOs, indirectly and directly. The former materializes via European firms cross-listing on U.S. exchanges, the latter results from European firms hiring U.S. independent board members. Both influences are expected to result in increased dismissal performance sensitivity. Based on …
On the Internationalization of Corporate Boards
2013
This study investigates the internationalization of corporate boards, using a sample of 346 non-financial listed Nordic firms during 2001–2008. Given a high level of international activity, these firms have surprisingly few foreign directors. The picture of international expertise changes considerably, however, if we also count the international experience of national directors. The percentage of foreign directors is related primarily to financial internationalization rather than foreign sales, and thus presumably to the monitoring rather than advisory functions. The international experience of the nationals covaries with foreign sales, and increases with the share of foreign directors. Thu…