Gender Diversity in the Senior Management of Large Technology Companies

2022 ◽  
pp. 1945-1962
Author(s):  
Yakira Fernández-Torres ◽  
Ricardo Javier Palomo-Zurdo ◽  
Milagros Gutiérrez-Fernández
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Governance ◽  
Boards Of Directors ◽  
Business Performance ◽  
Industrial Revolution ◽  
Gender Diversity ◽  
Female Representation ◽  
Distinctive Features ◽  
Representation Of Women ◽  
The Relationship

As a key part of the fourth industrial revolution, technology companies have become the most valuable companies in the world in terms of market capitalization. Surprisingly, however, these companies have been overlooked by studies of gender diversity in corporate governance even though their highly distinctive features may cause major differences in gender diversity with respect to companies in other sectors. The goal of this chapter is therefore to provide the first characterization of gender diversity in the corporate governance of large technology companies—specifically those with the highest market value—and explore the relationship between gender diversity and business performance. To achieve this goal, descriptive statistical analysis is used. Data correspond to the period 2005 to 2017. The findings confirm the under-representation of women on the boards of directors of 162 publicly listed companies. The findings also show that the most profitable companies are those that have the greatest female representation on their boards of directors.

Gender Diversity in the Senior Management of Large Technology Companies

2019 ◽  
pp. 48-64
Author(s):  
Yakira Fernández-Torres ◽  
Ricardo Javier Palomo-Zurdo ◽  
Milagros Gutiérrez-Fernández
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Governance ◽  
Boards Of Directors ◽  
Business Performance ◽  
Industrial Revolution ◽  
Gender Diversity ◽  
Female Representation ◽  
Distinctive Features ◽  
Representation Of Women ◽  
The Relationship

As a key part of the fourth industrial revolution, technology companies have become the most valuable companies in the world in terms of market capitalization. Surprisingly, however, these companies have been overlooked by studies of gender diversity in corporate governance even though their highly distinctive features may cause major differences in gender diversity with respect to companies in other sectors. The goal of this chapter is therefore to provide the first characterization of gender diversity in the corporate governance of large technology companies—specifically those with the highest market value—and explore the relationship between gender diversity and business performance. To achieve this goal, descriptive statistical analysis is used. Data correspond to the period 2005 to 2017. The findings confirm the under-representation of women on the boards of directors of 162 publicly listed companies. The findings also show that the most profitable companies are those that have the greatest female representation on their boards of directors.

Gender diversity influence on board effectiveness and business performance

2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (2) ◽  
pp. 307-323 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rocio Martinez-Jimenez ◽  
María Jesús Hernández-Ortiz ◽  
Ana Isabel Cabrera Fernández
Keyword(s):  
Firm Performance ◽  
Boards Of Directors ◽  
Business Performance ◽  
Gender Diversity ◽  
Small Sample ◽  
Board Effectiveness ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Mediating Role ◽  
The Relationship

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to analyze the mediating role of board effectiveness (understood as the capacity to efficiently manage and control all functions to guarantee the company’s prosperity) in the relationship between board diversity and firm performance. Design/methodology/approach The authors use partial least squares methodology to test the direct and indirect relationships between gender diversity in boards of directors and business performance. Findings Although the relationship between the presence of women on the board and the board’s effectiveness is statistically significant, this relationship is negative. However, board effectiveness (measured by the three constructs: strategic control, organizational innovation and decision-making) has a positive and statistically significant effect on business performance. Finally, there is a positive, but not statistically significant, relationship between gender diversity and firm performance. Research limitations/implications The study has a small sample size, and most of the boards of directors analyzed are unequal with only a few companies achieving gender parity. Social implications Public institutions must promote actions to achieve a critical mass of women directors and managers, so that women transcend a merely “symbolic” role on a board and are able to develop their skills and characteristics, thereby improving a board’s effectiveness and business performance. Originality/value This paper makes a theoretical contribution to the diversity and governance literature by providing a better understanding of the relationship between board gender diversity and firm performance. It considers the influence of women on the board through a holistic framework, analyzing the mediating role of the board’s effectiveness.

scholarly journals Gender Diversity in the Boardroom: Raising Questions About the "Comply or Explain" Model and Targets in Canada

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Rima Halabi
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Governance ◽  
Boards Of Directors ◽  
Gender Diversity ◽  
Business Case ◽  
Gender Disparity ◽  
Publicly Traded ◽  
Publicly Traded Companies ◽  
Representation Of Women ◽  
Meta Analyses ◽  
Comply Or Explain

Effective corporate governance requires diversity in perspectives. Nevertheless, gender disparity continues to be a long-standing and prevalent problem on Canadian boards of directors and in executive roles. A “business case” argument that asserts that diverse leadership achieves better financial results has been put forward in support of rectifying gender disparity; however, recent meta-analyses research denies the validity of the “business case” argument. This paper argues that conclusions regarding the invalidity of the business case should be approached with caution. In 2014, securities regulators in Canada implemented amendments to Form 58-101F1 Corporate Governance Disclosure in order to address gender diversity. Unfortunately, progress has been slow because the new diversity disclosure rules are not based on a true “comply or explain” model. This paper argues that securities regulators should require publicly traded companies to adopt a policy relating to the representation of women on their boards. Furthermore, this policy should include a target percentage, chosen by the company, for women on a company’s board of directors and in their executive officer positions.

scholarly journals Gender Diversity in Audit Partners and Audit Efforts

2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (4) ◽  
pp. 96
Author(s):  
Veronica Tibiletti ◽  
Stefano Azzali ◽  
Tatiana Mazza
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Governance ◽  
Chief Executive Officers ◽  
Boards Of Directors ◽  
Gender Diversity ◽  
Chief Executive ◽  
Audit Fees ◽  
Female Representation ◽  
Listed Firms ◽  
The Board Of Directors ◽  
Executive Officers

The research uses regression models and panel data related to audit fees, audit hours and corporate governance. The sample of listed firms yields 751 firms-years observations for the period 2010-2018. We study how gender diversity among audit partners, Chief Executive Officers, and Boards of Directors impact on audit fees and audit hours. We focus on the interaction between auditors and management. We find that female audit partners is associated with lower audit fees and audit hours. Next, we find that female audit partner significantly affects the association with the audit efforts in interaction with management, but when the audit partner is male, audit efforts are also determined by the female representation on the Board of Directors.  We contribute to literature on the effects of gender diversity in auditing and corporate governance. We also enrich the concept of audit efforts by including audit hours as well as audit fees. Finally, the research answers the call for empirical study on the effects of gender diversity in management-auditor interaction.

scholarly journals Institutional quality and the capital structure of microfinance institutions: the moderating role of board gender diversity

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-21
Author(s):  
Michael Adusei ◽  
Beatrice Sarpong-Danquah
Keyword(s):  
Capital Structure ◽  
Institutional Environment ◽  
Gender Diversity ◽  
Institutional Quality ◽  
Microfinance Institutions ◽  
Female Representation ◽  
Long Run ◽  
Board Gender Diversity ◽  
The Relationship

Abstract We test the effect of institutional quality on capital structure in the microfinance setting. In doing this, we rely on data from 532 microfinance institutions (MFIs) located in 73 countries dotted across the six microfinance regions in the world. We observe that institutional quality exhibits a robust negative and statistically significant relationship with capital structure in both the short and long run, implying that MFIs in countries with a better institutional environment are less likely to utilize more debt. Our moderation analysis furnishes us with evidence that the presence of women on the board of an MFI significantly moderates the relationship between institutional quality and its capital structure. We show that in the presence of more female representation on the boards of MFIs, the tendency of MFIs using less debt is higher.

Female directors on corporate boards and their impact on corporate social responsibility (CSR): evidence from China

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Waqas Bin Khidmat ◽  
Muhammad Danish Habib ◽  
Sadia Awan ◽  
Kashif Raza
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Governance ◽  
Corporate Social Responsibility ◽  
Gender Diversity ◽  
State Ownership ◽  
Corporate Boards ◽  
Female Representation ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Listed Firms ◽  
Self Selection ◽  
Corporate Social

Purpose This study aims to examine the determinants of the female representations on Chinese listed firm’s boards. This study also investigates the effect of gender diversity on corporate social responsibility activities. Design/methodology/approach The Tobit regression model is used because the data is censored and using ordinary least square regression can give spurious results. For robust check, the authors also used Heckman’s (1979) two-stage self-selection model to remove the sample self-selection bias. Findings The authors find that the female representations on the corporate board are positively associated with firm age, firm performance, corporate governance, family ownership, institutional ownership and managerial ownership while negatively related to firm size and state ownership. This study also incorporates predictors of the critical mass of women on the Chinese listed firm’s board. The study also tests the female-led hypothesis and concludes that the female representation increases in firms with female chief executive officer (CEO) or female chairpersons. The Chinese listed firms with gender-diverse board are socially responsible. Research limitations/implications The importance of diversity in corporate boards has been demonstrated in light of the agency theory and the resource dependence framework. The results contribute to the previous literature by documenting the determinants of female representations on board, robust by alternative measures of gender diversity, firm size, corporate governance and estimation techniques. Practical implications The economic significance of gender diversity stirred the firms to increase female representation. The policymakers can understand the reasons for female underrepresentation in Chinese boards and can reform the regulation to enhance governance quality, non-state ownership and risk aversion among the listed firms. Originality/value This study contributes to the literature by providing empirical evidence on the key predictor of the world’s largest emerging economy, specifically the study focuses on the firm specific determinants, different governance attributes, ownership structure and firm risk measures. This study also seeks to answer if the presence of a female in the Chairperson or CEO position encourages the firms to hire more female directors or not?

scholarly journals Impact of governance structures on environmental disclosures in the Middle East and Africa

2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (4) ◽  
pp. 739-763 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erhan Kilincarslan ◽  
Mohamed H. Elmagrhi ◽  
Zezeng Li
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Governance ◽  
Middle East ◽  
Gender Diversity ◽  
Governance Structures ◽  
Environmental Disclosure ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Environmental Disclosures ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose This study aims to investigate the impact of corporate governance structures on environmental disclosure practices in the Middle East and Africa (MEA). Design/methodology/approach The research model uses a panel data set of 121 publicly listed (non-financial and non-utility) firms from 11 MEA countries over the period 2010-2017, uses alternative dependent variables and regression techniques and is applied to various sub-groups to improve robustness. Findings The empirical results strongly indicate that MEA firms with high governance disclosures tend to have better environmental disclosure practices. The board characteristics of gender diversity, size, CEO/chairperson duality and audit committee size impact positively on MEA firms’ voluntary environmental disclosures, whereas board independence has a negative influence. Research limitations/implications This study advances research on the relationship between corporate governance structures and environmental disclosure practices in MEA countries, but is limited to firms for which data are available from Bloomberg. Practical implications The results have important practical implications for MEA policymakers and regulators. The positive impact of board gender diversity on firms’ environmental disclosures, policy reforms should aim to increase female directors. MEA corporations aiming to be more environmentally friendly should recruit women to top managerial positions. Originality/value This is thought to be the first study to provide insights from the efficiency and legitimation perspectives of neo-institutional theory to explain the relationship between MEA firms’ internal governance structures and environmental disclosures.

scholarly journals Exploring Linkages Between Corporate Governance and Business Performance: Does Good Corporate Governance Lead to Enhanced Business Value?

2020 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 37-61
Author(s):  
Tirthankar Nag ◽  
Chanchal Chatterjee
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Governance ◽  
Firm Performance ◽  
Business Performance ◽  
Stock Exchange ◽  
Random Effect ◽  
Corporate Boards ◽  
Market Returns ◽  
Good Corporate Governance ◽  
Governance Practices ◽  
The Relationship

This study explores the influence of corporate governance practices in corporate boards on firm performance and draws insights on the relative importance for companies for fostering the development of governance mechanisms in business. The study examines 50 firms belonging to the benchmark index of the National Stock Exchange of India (NIFTY 50) and tracks them for over a five-year period. The study uses fixed and random effect econometric models to explore the relationship between corporate governance variables, and firm performance using both accounting returns (EVA, ROA and ROE) and market returns (MVA). The study finds that corporate governance variables significantly improve firm performance or value creation. Especially, multiple directorships, involvement of foreign institutional investors and increase in promoter holdings may significantly affect returns of the firm. The study suggests that it may be useful to foster better corporate governance practices and monitor linkages with firm performance as the effect is influenced by other control variables also.

Women representation on boards: a South African perspective

2016 ◽  
Vol 24 (2) ◽  
pp. 211-225 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gizelle Willows ◽  
Megan van der Linde
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Governance ◽  
Financial Performance ◽  
Board Of Directors ◽  
Boards Of Directors ◽  
Critical Mass ◽  
Gender Diversity ◽  
Current Status ◽  
Company Performance ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Board Of Directors

Purpose By looking at both theoretical and empirical findings, this study aims to investigate whether gender diversity results in improved corporate governance and financial performance for companies. Design/methodology/approach An analysis of the board composition of the Johannesburg Securities Exchange Top 40 companies as at 30 June 2013 and a comparison of the financial performance of the company were conducted. Findings Female directors were found to make up, on average, 18.78 per cent of the board of directors, with the majority of these women being in non-executive positions. Women representation appears to influence company performance positively when using accounting-based measures of performance (such as return on assets and return on equity), but negatively when using market-based measures (such as Tobin’s Q). The critical mass concept is also assessed and is found to have a positive effect. Originality/value These findings are of relevance to the boards of directors adhering to corporate governance requirements by challenging the role of women on the board of directors, as well as that of investors and those in practice, to understand the current status of women representation.

scholarly journals The Relationship of Insider Trading Announcements, Ownership Structure and Corporate Governance: An Event Study Analysis of Athens Stock Exchange Market Technology Firms

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (7) ◽  
pp. 13 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ioannis Antoniadis ◽  
Christos Gkasis ◽  
Stamatis Kontsas
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Governance ◽  
Stock Returns ◽  
Event Study ◽  
Insider Trading ◽  
Boards Of Directors ◽  
Stock Exchange ◽  
Time Windows ◽  
Abnormal Stock Returns ◽  
Athens Stock Exchange ◽  
The Relationship

In the present paper, the relationship between corporate governance mechanisms of a firm and stock returns triggered by insider trading announcements is examined. Event study methodology has been used to evaluate the influence of 636 insider trading announcements performed by executives of 14 listed firms in the Athens Stock Exchange, that operate in the technology sector, during the period 2007-2013. The relationship between cumulative abnormal stock returns (CARs), caused by the announcements, and corporate governance characteristics, was then examined for different time windows, both for sales and purchases of stocks by insiders. Our findings suggest that insider trading, especially in purchases, performed by CEOs and members of the Boards of Directors, has a significant effect on stock returns in the long run. More specifically concentrated ownership structures and control were found to have a negative/positive effect in abnormal stock returns of the firms only in long-term periods of time following the announcement of purchases/sales.

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