Does Political Alignment between Top Management and Directors Impair Board Independence?

Author(s):  
Jongsub Lee ◽  
Kwang Lee ◽  
Nandu J. Nagarajan
2018 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Wenge Wang

Abstract This article explores the board independence of listed companies in the US and China – an ongoing and important issue of corporate governance concerning the true independence of independent directors from management in both countries. It aims to identify what elements have an impact on board independence and examine how these influence the independence of independent directors. Four elements, independence from management; dependence on shareholders; access to information; and incentive to monitor, may have a substantial influence on board independence and align with the in-fact independence of independent directors. This article examines how and why these four elements have an impact on the effectiveness of the role of independent directors in monitoring top management and lead to independent directors failing to be truly independent of management. To support this argument, this article also investigates the efficiency and effectiveness of independent directors serving as a governance mechanism in terms of board independence in Chinese listed companies. The aim was therefore to scrutinise whether independent directors in Chinese listed companies are truly independent from management. Based on statistics calculated on data collected from CSMAR, there appears to be little evidence that independent directors serve as a governance mechanism in monitoring top management in Chinese listed companies, which thus shows that independent directors are not independent in China. The implications arising from this article are that solutions addressing the four elements that have an impact on board independence will enable independent directors to become truly independent.


2012 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 142-158 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jae Wook Yoo ◽  
Kwangsoo Kim

AbstractThis study explains the inconsistent findings of previous research on board management by examining the direct and interaction effects of board independence and the top management team's external ties on firm performance. The results obtained using a multiyear sample of firms indicate that outsider-rich boards improved firm performance when they worked with top managers imported from outside the focal industry. On the other hand, a high proportion of outsiders on the board and top managers imported from the focal industry were not a desirable combination for firm performance. The findings imply that researchers and practitioners should pay more attention to identifying the conditions under which board competence aligns with top management.


2012 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 142-158 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jae Wook Yoo ◽  
Kwangsoo Kim

AbstractThis study explains the inconsistent findings of previous research on board management by examining the direct and interaction effects of board independence and the top management team's external ties on firm performance. The results obtained using a multiyear sample of firms indicate that outsider-rich boards improved firm performance when they worked with top managers imported from outside the focal industry. On the other hand, a high proportion of outsiders on the board and top managers imported from the focal industry were not a desirable combination for firm performance. The findings imply that researchers and practitioners should pay more attention to identifying the conditions under which board competence aligns with top management.


2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (VI) ◽  
pp. 354-371
Author(s):  
Jackline Naburi ◽  
Fredrick Ndede

Boards play a vital role in the field of corporate governance in corporate by acting as the overall governing body on all affairs of an organization. Dividend decisions determine the amount of retained earnings that serve as an internal source of finance for most listed companies. The main purpose of this study was to determine how board composition affected dividend decisions of companies listed at the Nairobi Securities Exchange. The study was guided by the following specific objectives: to determine the effect of Director Skills on dividend decisions of companies listed at the Nairobi Securities Exchange, to establish relationship between board independence and dividend decisions companies, listed at the Nairobi Securities Exchange, to examine the effect of board diversity on dividend decisions of companies listed at the Nairobi Securities Exchange and to investigate the effect of board tenure on dividend decisions companies listed at the Nairobi Securities Exchange. The study was anchored on the following theories: agency theory, stakeholder’s theory and stewardship theory. The study adopted a descriptive research design. The population of this study consisted of 700 top management staff drawn from all the 64 firms listed at Nairobi Securities Exchange. Stratified random sampling technique was used to select the sample. The sample size consisted of 254 top management staff of all the 64 listed firms at Nairobi Securities Exchange. The study used both secondary and primary data. Primary data was collected using questionnaires which were structured. Collected research data was analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Scientists software. The analysis was done using both descriptive and inferential statistics. This study provides an objective assessment of the available data and studies regarding the effect of board composition on dividend decisions of companies listed at the Nairobi Securities Exchange. The findings are appropriate and relevant for seeking a solution to combating poor board compositions among listed companies which improve their dividend decisions. This study has intellectual importance especially to other companies not listed on Nairobi Securities Exchange but facing similar problems with their board composition. It provides essential information for scholars seeking a wide variety of options towards approaching the issue of board composition and dividend decisions of companies. At 5% level of significance, directors’ skills, board independence and board tenure were found to be statistically significant while board diversity was not significant. The study used the F- statistic to test the overall significance of the regression model and the model was found statistically significant and suitable for this study. The model had an R2 of 0.7769 implying that variations in the four independent variables accounted for 77.7% of variations in the dependent variable which was further proof that the model was statistically significant and suitable for the study since it explained nearly all the variability of the dependent variable. It is against this backdrop that this research study arrived at conclusions including that profitability had the greatest influence on dividend payout for firms listed at the NSE and recommended among others, that companies listed at the NSE observe and manage well their policies dealing with the four independent variables. Finally, the study made various recommendations among them, further similar research using multiple economic factors. This will enable a thorough research as it gives a wholesome approach to establishing determinants of dividend payout for firms listed at the NSE.


2014 ◽  
Vol 112 (2) ◽  
pp. 232-250 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jongsub Lee ◽  
Kwang J. Lee ◽  
Nandu J. Nagarajan

2020 ◽  
Vol 64 (4) ◽  
pp. 234-248
Author(s):  
Vivien Höflinger ◽  
Christian Mai ◽  
Marion Büttgen ◽  
Andreas Eckhardt
Keyword(s):  
Big Five ◽  

Zusammenfassung. Um die komplexe Verbindung zwischen Wesenskennzeichen und Führungserfolg auf Top-Managementebene zu entschlüsseln, bietet der Generalfaktor der Persönlichkeit (GFP) eine interessante, aber bis dato eher selten genutzte Alternative zu herkömmlichen Konzepten der Persönlichkeitspsychologie. Hier setzt die vorliegende Studie an. Sie extrahiert aus den klassischen Dimensionen der Big Five einen übergeordneten Generalfaktor und verknüpft diesen mit den Persönlichkeitsmerkmalen der Dunklen Triade. Die Erhebung bei 320 deutschen Vorständen und Geschäftsführern zeigt, dass sich der Persönlichkeitsfaktor speziell für das Top-Management (GFP-E) durch die Faktorladungen und hinsichtlich der Facettenhierarchie vom herkömmlichen GFP unterscheidet. Der spezifisch für Executives ermittelte GFP-E korreliert positiv mit individuellen Erfolgs- und Zufriedenheitsmaßen sowie mit Narzissmus, einer Dimension der Dunklen Triade. Außerdem zeigen sich negative Zusammenhänge zu Machiavellismus und Psychopathie. Die Ergebnisse erlauben weiterführende Implikationen für die Forschung sowie die Auswahl und Förderung von Managern in der Unternehmenspraxis.


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