scholarly journals Women on Board: Female Board Membership as a Form of Elite Democratization

2014 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. 252-284 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eelke Michiel Heemskerk ◽  
Meindert Fennema
Keyword(s):  
The Netherlands ◽  
Board Members ◽  
Third Wave ◽  
Corporate Boards ◽  
Female Directors ◽  
Corporate Elite ◽  
Female Politicians ◽  
Corporate Elites ◽  
Female Presence ◽  
Predominantly Female

Corporate elites have been all-male bastions until the twenty-first century. The recent inclusion of women in the corporate elite needs explanation because it is an abrupt change in recruitment practices. We consider female presence in corporate boards as a sign of the democratization of elite social networks. Building on a case study of the Netherlands that covers the last four decades, we show that the corporate elite has become more open to nonmembers of traditional elites. In the process, women have also entered the boardroom. Initially, these were predominantly female politicians, but more recently many large corporations have recruited foreign females. We argue that the incremental feminization of the corporate elite was in the beginning—that is in the 1970s—initiated by the state but was subsequently pushed forward by the internationalization of corporate governance. We have traced the professional background of all female board members of the largest firms in the Netherlands over the period 1969–2011. We show that the female board members do not form a homogeneous group. The first wave of female directors had a political background, the second wave had an academic background, whereas the third wave was recruited from within the corporations. In this third wave, foreign female directors became predominant. Elites open up their ranks and privileged positions to women, but they do so reluctantly and under outside pressure.

Who Runs the Firm? A Long-Term Analysis of Gender Inequality on Swiss Corporate Boards

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-29
Author(s):  
STEPHANIE GINALSKI
Keyword(s):  
First Century ◽  
Corporate Boards ◽  
The Past ◽  
Corporate Elite ◽  
Universal Suffrage ◽  
Recent Arrival ◽  
Women On Corporate Boards ◽  
Corporate Elites ◽  
Term Analysis

The recent arrival of women on corporate boards has been extensively discussed in the literature. However, most of the studies focus on very recent times. This article analyzes the presence of women on the corporate boards of the largest firms in Switzerland across the past hundred years. It shows that until the beginning of the 1970s, the very few women sitting on the boardrooms belonged to the families owning the firms. Two main factors contributed then to the progressive opening of the corporate elites to women. First, the extending in 1971 of “universal suffrage” to women led to a feminization of the political elites, and women with a political profile entered the boardrooms of firms in the distribution and retailing sector. Second, the increasing globalization of the economy at the end of the twentieth century contributed to weaken the cohesion of the very male and Swiss corporate elite. At the beginning of the twenty-first century, however, the presence of women remained low in international comparison, and they were still hitting the “glass ceiling” regarding the top positions in the firm.

Boards of directors in Russian publicly traded companies: the gender aspect

2018 ◽  
pp. 142-155 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. A. Garanina ◽  
A. A. Muravyev
Keyword(s):  
Boards Of Directors ◽  
Company Performance ◽  
Corporate Boards ◽  
Publicly Traded ◽  
Publicly Traded Companies ◽  
Representation Of Women ◽  
Female Directors ◽  
Female Director ◽  
Gender Aspect ◽  
Longitudinal Dataset

This article studies the gender composition of corporate boards of Russian companies, including its relation to company performance. The analysis is based on a unique longitudinal dataset of virtually all Russian companies whose shares were traded on the stock market in 1998-2014. It shows a relatively small representation of women, just 12% of all the seats, while about 40% of the companies did not have any female director. At the same time, both the share of companies that appoint female directors and the share of female directors on boards show a clear upward trend. The econometric analysis suggests a positive link between the presence of female directors on boards and company performance, especially when firms appoint several, rather than one, female directors.

scholarly journals Women on Boards and Firm Performance: A Microeconometric Search for a Connection

2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (9) ◽  
pp. 218
Author(s):  
Marek Gruszczyński
Keyword(s):  
Firm Performance ◽  
Gender Diversity ◽  
Annual Reports ◽  
Company Performance ◽  
Corporate Boards ◽  
Econometric Evidence ◽  
Women On Boards ◽  
Modern Business ◽  
Improved Performance ◽  
Female Presence

This paper discusses questions of the gender diversity of corporate boards vis-à-vis firm performance. Typically, researchers have asked if a female presence is associated with improved performance and more transparent governance. The paper’s first part reports on several econometric attempts in the quest to prove the existence of such an association. The primary outcome is that the results vary over geographical, cultural, and time settings. The study presented in the second part examines European firms’ annual reports from 2015. Binomial models, multiple regression, and quantile regression are applied resulting in the finding that female presence on a board is not significantly related to firm performance for this sample. Together with the picture that emerged from the paper’s first part, this result leads to the possibility that the search for an association between women on boards and company performance is not fundamental. Nevertheless, modern business societies worldwide may need to boost the female presence on managerial bodies. Current econometric evidence indicates that this is not harmful to corporate results.

Gendering Corporate Boards and Conditional Effectiveness of Board Processes: Insights from a Sub-Saharan African Country

2021 ◽  
pp. 097215092110362
Author(s):  
Obi Berko O. Damoah ◽  
Yvonne Ayerki Lamptey ◽  
Alex Anlesinya ◽  
Barbara Naa Amanuah Tetteh
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Governance ◽  
African Country ◽  
Board Members ◽  
Corporate Boards ◽  
Corporate Board ◽  
Board Processes ◽  
Board Directors ◽  
Women On Corporate Boards ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
Board Level

This study explored how and when female board members make effective contribution to board processes in a sub-Saharan African country (Ghana), a context characterized by low female representation on corporate boards, but highly under-researched with respect to the gender and corporate governance literature. The study is based on interview data from 25 female board directors in Ghana. The results show that women on corporate boards contribute to effective board processes and outcomes when their proposed ideas during board meetings are accepted by other board members, implemented by management and impact positively on organizational outcomes such as enhanced financial, product and staff outcomes. These effective contributions of female board directors to corporate board processes can further be enhanced by suitable female directors’ personal-level conditions such as their human capital (advanced degree and professional qualification, and past board membership experience) and family support (supportive husbands, and having grown up children), as well as board-level conditions like occupying chairperson/leadership position on the board or committees, and regular attendance at board meetings. Consequently, this research study contributed to the gender and corporate governance literature by providing new evidence from under-researched geographical context on how women on corporate boards contribute to effective board processes. It further highlights personal and board-level conditions that are necessary for greater contributions of female directors to corporate board processes and outcomes in male-dominated societies and boards.

scholarly journals Female directors in Italy: The state of art after the mandatory gender quota

2017 ◽  
Vol 14 (3) ◽  
pp. 157-169 ◽  
Author(s):  
Barbara Sveva Magnanelli ◽  
Elisa Raoli ◽  
Riccardo Tiscini
Keyword(s):  
Family Firms ◽  
The State ◽  
Board Composition ◽  
Corporate Boards ◽  
Female Directors ◽  
Before And After ◽  
The Law ◽  
The Difference ◽  
The Impact ◽  
State Of Art

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the state of art of female directors in terms of presence, role and remuneration for Italian corporate boards. The analysis wants to highlight the changes occurred after the introduction of the mandatory female quotas legislation in 2012 and to check how many firms are already complying with the law after 2 years. The picture of the state of art is drawn looking at 163 Italian listed firms for a period of 4 years, from 2011 to 2014. The analysis of the data reveals relevant differences in board composition before and after the law. A significant result concerning the presence of female directors stands in the difference between family and non-family firms: the first are those with higher number of female members in the board. Additionally, an interesting data refers to the amount of remuneration for women, which is significantly lower than the remuneration provided to male directors. Being the first work which charts the situation of board composition and board member remuneration in Italy before and after female quotas introduction, this paper wants to trace some key points for future analysis about the impact of female quotas on various firm’s aspects, such as firm performance, firm earning management and quality, governance characteristics.

scholarly journals Implementing the board of directors’ mechanism – An empirical study of the listed firms in Libya

2018 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 22-33 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jill Atkins ◽  
Mohamed Zakari ◽  
Ismail Elshahoubi
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Governance ◽  
Board Of Directors ◽  
Boards Of Directors ◽  
Listed Companies ◽  
Board Members ◽  
Corporate Boards ◽  
Listed Firms ◽  
Stakeholder Groups ◽  
The Board Of Directors ◽  
Executive Managers

This paper aims to investigate the extent to which board of directors’ mechanism is implemented in Libyan listed companies. This includes a consideration of composition, duties and responsibilities of the board directors. This study employed a questionnaire survey to collect required data from four key stakeholder groups: Boards of Directors (BD), Executive Managers (EM), Regulators and External Auditors (RE) and Other Stakeholders (OS). The results of this study provided evidence that Libyan listed companies generally comply with the Libyan Corporate Governance Code (LCGC) requirements regarding the board composition: the findings assert that most boards have between three and eleven members, the majority of whom are non-executives and at least two or one-third of whom (whichever is greater) are independent. Moreover, the results indicate that general assemblies in Libyan listed companies are practically committed to the LCGC’s requirements regarding the appointment of board members and their length of tenure. The findings provide evidence that boards in Libyan listed companies are carrying out their duties and responsibilities in accordance with internal regulations and laws, as well as the stipulations of the LCGC (2007). Furthermore, the stakeholder groups were broadly satisfied that board members are devoting sufficient time and effort to discharge these duties and responsibilities properly. This study helps to enrich our understanding and knowledge of the current practice of corporate boards as a significant mechanism of corporate governance (CG) by being the first to address the board of directors’ mechanism in Libyan listed companies.

scholarly journals Women Do the Job: The Reasons to Set Quota for Women on Boards

2018 ◽  
Vol 13 (12) ◽  
pp. 167
Author(s):  
Sara De Masi ◽  
Agnieszka Słomka-Gołębiowska ◽  
Andrea Paci
Keyword(s):  
Audit Committee ◽  
Empirical Support ◽  
Board Structure ◽  
Corporate Boards ◽  
Controlling Shareholder ◽  
Female Directors ◽  
Women On Boards ◽  
Board Monitoring ◽  
Women On Corporate Boards ◽  
Family Connection

In 2012 Italy introduced quota to increase the number of women on corporate boards. The aim of our research is to shed more lights on how women on boards, after the enforcement of quota law, improve the board functions and the board structure. Our study focuses on all Italian FTSE MIB companies from 2008 to 2015. Italy is a country where the percentage of female directors was very low before quota. Female directors, when present, were linked through a family connection to the controlling shareholder. Our research demonstrates that a higher percentage of women on boards, after the quota, leads to a higher board members attendance and more board meetings, thus a better board monitoring. We document that, after quota, one more women to the board results in increasing the board involvement in strategy and the independence of audit committee. Our findings provide empirical support on the effectiveness of female directors, suggesting important implications of the quota legislation on the “type” of women elected.

scholarly journals Lige for lige? Kønssegregering i Folketingudvalg og i ledelsen af det private erhvervsliv

Politik ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Christina Fiig ◽  
Mette Verner
Keyword(s):  
Gender Segregation ◽  
Foreign Affairs ◽  
Board Members ◽  
Corporate Boards ◽  
Public Attention ◽  
Publicly Traded ◽  
The Public ◽  
Representation Of Women ◽  
Explorative Study ◽  
Parliamentary Politics

In this article, we describe and discuss the vertical and horizontal gender segregation in the elites of Danish Parliamentary politics and private business. Our new data on the gender distribution on corporate boards of publicly traded firms show how women are absent among board chairs and CEOs and illustrates the low representation of women among board members.  Among members of Parliamentary committees a more equal gender representation is found, however, there is a clear tendency toward a vertical and a horizontal segregation. Our findings show that women MPs are less represented in certain Parliamentary committees on foreign affairs, economy, finance, tax and transportation. This distribution mirrors other country studies on Parliamentary committees. We propose two hypotheses in order to explain our explorative study: a thesis on a gender bias of certain policy areas and a hypothesis on the significance of the ‘public eye’. Concerning the latter, our results illustrate how institutions subject to ‘the public eye’ have more balanced gender compositions than institutions with less public attention, like corporate boards.

Legitimacy profiles of women directors on top French company boards

2015 ◽  
Vol 34 (7) ◽  
pp. 803-820 ◽  
Author(s):  
Val Singh ◽  
Sebastien Point ◽  
Yves Moulin ◽  
Andrès Davila
Keyword(s):  
Management Development ◽  
Annual Reports ◽  
Academic Excellence ◽  
Gender Quotas ◽  
Corporate Boards ◽  
Women Directors ◽  
Corporate Board ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Female Directors ◽  
Short Space

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to question the profiles of female directors on top French company boards. It explores the legitimacy attributes of current female directors to identify the profiles sought recently, as firms approach the need to make many new appointments to fulfill gender quotas for supervisory boards, given that the proportion of women on a corporate board must reach 40 percent by 2017, with an intermediate level of 20 percent by 2014. Design/methodology/approach – The authors gathered numerical and qualitative biographical data on all SBF 120 (French stock exchange index) firms’ female directors from annual reports and web sites over seven years (from 2003 to 2009). The authors constructed an SPSS database to categorize the individuals into various orders of legitimacy. Findings – Drawing on director bio-data, the authors extend previous work on four legitimacy assets (family ownership; academic excellence; strong ties to the State; and top career), by adding a fifth asset (representative director), and contribute a gender dimension to the literature on personal legitimacy. Owning-family ties and academic excellence are still particularly salient in explaining legitimacy of women directors. A new source of female directors since 2005 is the pool of foreign women, outside the elite Grandes Ecoles system. Research limitations/implications – The authors had data for directors of 115 companies out of the SBF 120 firms. The authors also lacked data for seven women out of 144 appointed during the period, despite efforts to track down data from public sources. Practical implications – These legitimacy profiles present different challenges for management development as those responsible for appointing several women to their boards in a short space of time will find out. Social implications – The authors highlight that with the diminishing role of family members on large corporate boards, more women directors need to be found, developed and mentored. If this approach is followed, new female directors with solid achievements can be appointed, without having their legitimacy as directors challenged by resistant males. Women will thus be able to take their legitimate place in French boardrooms and contribute their diverse experiences and knowledge. Originality/value – This paper questions the legitimacy assets of female directors, which can be clustered into three groups: combined elite education and top corporate career; owning-family membership; and representative directors. These legitimacy profiles present different challenges for management development as those responsible for appointing several women to their boards in a short space of time will find out.

Do Female Directors on Corporate Boards Make a Difference in Family Owned Businesses?

2019 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
pp. 85-102 ◽  
Author(s):  
Barbara Sveva Magnanelli ◽  
Luigi Nasta ◽  
Elisa Raoli
Keyword(s):  
Firm Performance ◽  
Family Firms ◽  
Negative Impact ◽  
Gender Diversity ◽  
Family Businesses ◽  
Corporate Boards ◽  
Listed Firms ◽  
Female Directors ◽  
And Performance ◽  
Gender Quota

ABSTRACT This paper investigates how the presence of female directors on corporate boards impacts the performance of family firms. This study enriches the literature on gender diversity on corporate boards and its effects on firm performance by focusing on a country in which family businesses are dominant. The empirical analysis is conducted on a sample of 165 Italian-listed firms from 2011 to 2016, representing the period during which the mandatory gender quota law was introduced and implemented in Italy. The results show a positive relationship between the presence of women on corporate boards and firm performance, specifically in family owned businesses. These findings lead to the conclusion that female directors do not have a negative impact on firm performance. And, given the domination of family businesses and a mandatory gender quota law in Italy, this study makes a regulatory and performance assessment not previously examined in the literature. JEL Classifications: M1; M12; M48; M21.

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