Women and corporate boards of directors: The promise of increased, and substantive, participation in the post Sarbanes-Oxley era

Few aspects of corporate board diversity have generated the focused attention that the participation, position, and promise of women's service on the board has generated, especially in recent years. Of particular note is the extent to which women serve on large firm boards of directors (e.g., Fortune 500 firms). Increases in levels of participation have been described as glacial. While critics decry the level of participation of women on large-scale corporate boards, careful scrutiny suggests substantial progress. Concurrent with steady increases in the overall participation of women on corporate boards are increases in their presence on key board committees. Importantly, women's leadership of key board committees and their service as lead directors has improved in parallel with increases in their board memberships. These increases are particularly noteworthy in the post Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) period. Such trends suggest the continued progress of women in assuming prominent positions in the corporate governance landscape, and provide evidence that the increasingly challenging environment in the post-SOX era has not attenuated the gains noted in the pre-SOX period.     

Women on boards of directors: Why skirts in seats aren’t enough

Most organizations focus their attention on simply achieving gender diversity on their boards. This approach misses the point. A complex relationship exists between board gender diversity and good governance whereby such diversity can have a negative, positive, or neutral impact on organizational performance, indicating that organizations may only reap the benefits of gender-diverse boards under proper conditions. This article examines which conditions allow gender-diverse boards to flourish and which conditions lead to failure. Organizations usually increase female representation on boards of directors to achieve one of two goals: gender parity or improved governance. Each of these goals is influenced by different circumstances and thus must be approached in a unique manner. Three recommendations are offered herein for organizations trying to achieve each goal. Gender, ethnic, and cultural board diversity all share related justifications and challenges, so organizations that follow the recommendations in this article will be well positioned to benefit from all three sources of increased diversity on their boards of directors.     

独立董事个人特征与任期内公司经营绩效

本文针对独立董事在性别、教育、专长、经验和资源等方面的个人特征与其任期内公司经营绩效之间的关系,基于2008—2010年间沪深A股上市公司的样本数据,利用多元线性回归分析予以检验。研究发现,从整个任期来看,独立董事的性别、学历、职业背景、多重董事身份、年龄和国际经验等个人特征均不会对公司经营绩效产生显著影响,只有法律专长、会计专长和管理经验等个人特征才具有显著的绩效效应。本文提出,如果监管者希望独立董事制度有助于改善公司经营绩效,就应当进一步完善该制度,促使独立董事聘用与公司经营管理之间的联系更加紧密,建立有助于独立董事充分发挥作用的制度和环境,提高独立董事改善公司经营绩效的激励。     

高管薪酬、董事会治理与分类转移

本文研究了高管薪酬和董事会治理对分类转移的影响。研究表明,货币薪酬会诱使高管向上转移利得,股权激励和缺乏区分度的薪酬制度会诱使高管同时向下转移费用和向上转移利得;而勤勉、独立和两职分离的董事会能够在一定程度上识别并抑制这两种不同方式的分类转移;但董事会对分类转移的抑制程度小于高管薪酬对分类转移的诱发程度。进一步地,良好的市场、法制和媒体监督环境能够有效缓解高管薪酬对分类转移的诱发作用,而董事会能够有效弥补法制建设和媒体监督不足导致的分类转移治理缺陷,并在较高质量的审计环境下对分类转移发挥更强的抑制作用。本文首次结合制度背景和媒体监督研究了公司核心治理机制对不同分类转移方式的影响和原因,并创新性地对向上转移利得的程度进行了衡量,为监管部门及公司治理机制、会计准则的制定者提供经验证据。     

Self-Employed Nicaraguan Women Under Neoliberalism: Characteristics and Determinants

ABSTRACT

This paper explores the characteristics and determinants of self-employed women in Nicaragua during the neoliberal period of the 1990s. The labor market outcomes of women (self-employed, waged and salaried) are analyzed utilizing micro data from the 1998 and 1993 Nicaraguan Living Standards Measurement Surveys. The empirical results derived from the usage of a switching regression choice model suggest that work experience is the major determinant of self-employment. Experience, marriage and residence in the southern region are critical and significant elements of the self-employment decision. Mixed findings are reported for sectoral selection, suggesting that the self-employed may alternate back and forth between sectors with the highest returns.

RESUMEN. Este estudio explora las características y determinantes de las mujeres autónomas en Nicaragua durante el período neoliberal de los años 1990. El resultado del mercado laboral femenino (autónomas, empleadas temporales y asalariadas) es objeto de un enfoque analítico basado en datos micro de los años 1998 y 1993 que constan en la Medición de las Encuestas sobre los Estándares de Vida Nicaragüenses. Los resultados empíricos obtenidos usando un modelo selectivo de intercambio regresivo, sugieren que la experiencia laboral es el mayor determinante del empleo autónomo. La experiencia, casamiento y domicilio en la región sureña son elementos críticos e importantes en la toma de decisión de ser autónoma. La mezcla dehallazgos encontrados se expone para facilitar la selección sectorial, sugiriendo que el empleo autónomo puede alternar como péndulo entre los sectores que ofrecen retornos más altos.

RESUMO. Este artigo explora as características e determinantes das mulheres autônomas na Nicarágua durante o período neoliberal dos anos noventa. As informaç[otilde]es existentes sobre o mercado de trabalho das mulheres (autônomas e assalariadas) são analisadas, a partir dos dados detalhados retirados dos Estudos de Mensuração dos Padr[otilde]es de Vida Nicaragüenses de 1998 e 1993. Os resultados empíricos derivados do uso de um modelo de escolha baseado no método de switching regression sugerem que a experiência de trabalho é um fator determinante do trabalho autônomo ou auto-emprego. Experiência, casamento e residência na região sul são elementos críticos e significantes da decisão de se auto-empregar ou tornar-se um profissional autônomo. Resultados mistos são reportados para a seleção por setor de atividade, sugerindo que o profissional autônomo ou auto-empregado pode alternar entre setores, indo e vindo em busca daqueles que oferecem retornos mais elevados.     

董事会特征、盈余管理动机与非流动资产处置

本文以沪深两市2007-2014年发生非流动资产处置损益的A股上市公司为样本,分析处置非流动资产的盈余管理动机以及公司董事会特征对真实盈余管理的抑制作用。研究结果表明：上市公司为了实现扭亏的目标,存在利用非流动资产处置收益实施盈余管理的行为;董事会治理机制中,董事长与总经理两职合一、独立董事比例和董事会开会次数与真实盈余管理水平显著负相关;相对于民营上市公司,国有上市公司真实盈余管理动机更强,其董事长与总经理两职合一和独立董事比例抑制盈余管理的功能优于民营上市公司,而民营上市公司的董事会开会次数的监督功能更为有效。     

内部审计在管控董事会风险认知偏差中的监督与协同机制研究

在信息化和科技化时代,风险愈加复杂和未知,企业强化风险管理的重要性凸显,需要及时、准确感知面临的风险,做出科学的决策,而这一决策又容易受到风险认知的影响。因此,为了减弱董事会做出不当决策的风险,内部审计通过发挥监督和协同作用能够缓解风险认知偏差带来的影响。创新之处在于尝试从关键风险参与者角度分析董事会产生风险认知偏差的原因,并通过内部审计发挥在风险管理中的作用,推动董事会、高管层与内部审计在风险管理中的战略协调和默契协作,使董事会做出正确的战略决策。     

浅析女性旅游的特征与意义

随着社会的进步,女性的社会地位与经济地位不断提高,女性越来越独立。她们在承担与男人一样的社会责任的同时,又要肩负琐碎的家庭事务。她们的工作压力与生活压力不亚于男性,男性常常用喝酒、抽烟或朋友集会的方式来释放自己的压力,而女人则常常以购物或是品尝美食来释放自己的压力。将女性的购物、品尝美食同旅游结合起来,不仅能使女性更好地释放压力,而且还在游山玩水中锻炼了身体,陶冶了情操,丰富了知识,开阔了眼界,增加了自信。发展女性旅游有利于家庭幸福,社会和谐,使生活更加健康,也体现了社会进步,有利于经济的发展。     

Women on Corporate Boards of Directors: A Needed Resource

This research reports the results of a study of women serving on boards of directors of Canadian private and public sector organizations. These women (N = 278) were an impressive and talented group (eduction, professional designations). In addition, they brought a variety of backgrounds and expertise to their director responsibilities. Most were nominated as a result of recommendations from current board members, CEOs, or someone who knew board members or CEOs. Thus personal relationships (the old boy's network) as well as track records and appropriate expertise were important factors in board nominations. Women directors thought they had some influence on women's issues with their boards and board companies. A majority believed that board members should be more diverse, including more women and fewer male CEOs. However they indicated several barriers faced by women in being selected and nominated for board appointments.     

The Effect of Board Size and Composition on the Efficiency of UK Banks

We examine a sample of 17 banking institutions operating in the UK between 2001 and 2006 to provide empirical evidence on the association between the efficiency of UK banks and board structure, namely board size and composition. Our approach is to use data envelopment analysis to estimate several measures of the efficiency of banks, and then to use panel data regressions for investigating the impact of board structure on efficiency. After controlling for bank size and capital strength, we find some evidence of a positive association between board size and efficiency, although this is not robust across all our specifications. Board composition, by contrast, has a robustly significant and positive impact on all measures of efficiency.     

Women count: Perceptions of forecasting in sales

This study identifies sales managers’ perceptions of sales forecasting. We surveyed close to 400 business-to-business sales managers, split about equally by gender, and concluded forecasting-related preferences, beliefs, and desires. Herein, we evaluate gender differences and identify some critical perceptions of women that differ from the perceptions of their male counterparts. We also compare attitudes, behaviors, and demographics of women and men. We conclude with organizational recommendations and implications for firms concerning hiring practices, forecasting tool selection, training and development, and the use of an employee resource group.     

董事会特征与公司绩效研究 --基于民营上市公司的经验分析

董事会是公司治理结构的核心,人们普遍关心董事会特征是如何影响公司绩效的.本文利用民营上市公司2001-2003年的最新数据进行的经验分析表明,三年来董事会建设渐趋规范,而公司绩效却逐年下滑;董事长与总经理两职完全合一与公司绩效显著负相关,本文支持两职分离设置.本项研究没有发现董事会规模、董事长持股及独立董事比例对公司有正面的作用.本文认为,这个结果可能从一个侧面反映了民营公司的强控股股东弱董事会的特点.在加强董事会建设的同时,有必要进一步研究影响民营公司绩效的其他更为复杂的因素.     

创业板上市公司资本结构影响因素的实证研究

本文选取了2010年4月份前在创业板上市的65家公司为样本,进行回归分析,考察创业板上市公司资本结构的影响因素、研究表明：资泰结构与企业规模、经营能力呈显著的正相关关系;与盈利能力、偿债能力呈显著的负相关关系;同时与资产有形性、股票投资收益、高管持股比例不具有显著的相关关系。     

Women Directors on Corporate Boards: From Tokenism to Critical Mass

Academic debate on the strategic importance of women corporate directors is widely recognized and still open. However, most corporate boards have only one woman director or a small minority of women directors. Therefore they can still be considered as tokens. This article addresses the following question: does an increased number of women corporate boards result in a build up of critical mass that substantially contributes to firm innovation? The aim is to test if ‘at least three women’ could constitute the desired critical mass by identifying different minorities of women directors (one woman, two women and at least three women). Tests are conducted on a sample of 317 Norwegian firms. The results suggest that attaining critical mass – going from one or two women (a few tokens) to at least three women (consistent minority) – makes it possible to enhance the level of firm innovation. Moreover, the results show that the relationship between the critical mass of women directors and the level of firm innovation is mediated by board strategic tasks. Implications for both theory and practice, and future research directions are discussed.     

股权结构、董事会特征与会计信息质量关系的实证研究——来自A股上市公司的经验证据

选取2001-2005年期间被我国证券监督委员会公开处罚的财务报告舞弊的上市公司为研究样本,并选取了股权结构、董事会特征等方面的10个指标,对公司治理结构与会计信息舞弊的关系进行实证研究。研究发现:独立董事比例、审计委员会的设置与会计舞弊显著负相关,董事会规模、控制股东的性质、监事会规模与会计舞弊显著正相关。     

Foreign Investment in Brazilian Public Offerings: The Role of Board Composition

Recently, foreigners have been responsible for negotiating more than half of the shares issued by the companies listed in the Brazilian Stock Market. In order to understand the characteristics of companies that influence the increase of international financing, the aim of this article was to investigate the relation between foreign investment in public offerings and board composition. We examine data of 183 Brazilian IPOs and subsequent offerings from 2004–2016 using OLS regression. The empirical result suggested that companies that have a foreign director as a board member and are in a special listing segment of B3—bound by rules of corporate governance—tend to attract more foreign investment. This means that foreigners are sensitive to good corporate governance practices when financing Brazilian firms’ IPOs or that issue new shares. Our findings imply that improvements in the corporate governance practice of companies could increase their ability to raise foreign capital.

RESUMERecientemente, más de la mitad de las acciones emitidas por las empresas cotizadas en la Bolsa de Valores brasileña fueron negociadas por extranjeros. El objeto de este estudio consistió en investigar la relación existente entre las inversiones extranjeras en las ofertas públicas y la composición de sus juntas directivas, para entender las características de las empresas que contribuyen a aumentar el financiamiento internacional. Utilizando la regresión de mínimos cuadrados ordinarios dinámicos (MCOD, OLS en inglés), examinamos datos de la Oferta Pública Inicial Brasileña 183 (IPO) así como ofertas subsiguientes del período 2004-2016. El resultado empírico obtenido sugiere que las empresas cuya junta directiva tiene como miembro un director extranjero y constan en un segmento de cotización especial (B3), sujeto a normas de gobernanza corporativa, suelen atraer más inversiones extranjeras. Esto implica que, al financiarlas, los extranjeros son más susceptibles a que las empresas brasileñas que abren su capital o emiten nuevas acciones, usen buenas prácticas de gobernanza corporativa. Nuestros hallazgos sugieren que la implementación de mejoras en las prácticas de gobernanza corporativa de las empresas puede aumentar su financiamiento internacional.

RESUMORecentemente os estrangeiros passaram a ser responsáveis pela negociação de mais da metade das ações emitidas pelas empresas listadas na Bolsa de Valores brasileira. Para entender as características das empresas que influenciam o aumento do financiamento internacional, o presente trabalho tem como objetivo o estudo da relação entre o investimento estrangeiro nas ofertas públicas e a composição das diretorias. Examinamos dados de 183 IPOs (Oferta Pública Inicial) e de ofertas subsequentes, de 2004 a 2016, usando a regressão MQO (OLS na sigla em inglês). O resultado empírico sugere que as empresas que têm um diretor estrangeiro na diretoria e que estão no segmento de listagem especial da B3—sujeitas às normas de governança corporativa—tendem a atrair mais investimentos. Isso significa que os estrangeiros estão alerta quanto às boas práticas de governança ao considerar empresas brasileiras que abrem o capital ou que emitem ações novas. Os nossos achados sugerem que melhorias nas práticas de governança corporativa das empresas podem elevar o financiamento internacional das empresas.     

论监事会与独立董事的融合

监事会和独立董事作为公司法人治理结构的两种监督机制具有各自的特性，在我国现有经济体制下，更应当将二有机结合，从而克服机构重复设置给公司带来的资源浪费。     

董事会绩效管理体系的构建

在现代企业中，董事会本质上属于公司的代理人，它是将公司活动全面联系起来的一个支点，也是公司人力资源的重要组成部分，董事会运行的好坏直接关系到一个企业的生存与发展，因此，对其进行绩效管理就显得十分必要。董事会绩效管理必须成为公司治理系统的一个重要部分，正逐渐被视作董事会最重要、在程序上和实质上最具挑战性的任务之一。因而，应依据董事会的特点，构建适合董事会自身的绩效管理体系。     

Board structure and role of monitoring committees

Regulators and researchers alike have focused significant attention on the structure of the corporate board. In general, the results of prior empirical studies suggest that larger boards are costly to firms because of communication and co-ordination problems. How firms use committees to mitigate these costs, however, has not received as much attention. Since boards delegate authority for specific tasks to monitoring committees with independent directors, we re-examine the impact of board structure on firm performance by specifically focusing on the number of monitoring committees. Using ROA and EVA, we find that board size is positively associated with firm performance when firms use more than three monitoring committees. We also find that the previously documented negative association between board size and Tobin's Q disappears when a firm uses more than three monitoring committees. Overall, the results suggest that firms use monitoring committees to mitigate the costs associated with larger boards.     

Board of Director Quality and Firm Performance

This paper aims to shed light on the relationship between the quality of the individuals on a firm's board of directors and performance. It reports the results of an empirical study of a sample of Fortune 1000 firms. The findings suggest that quality boards, as measured by the average number of board seats held by each director, are associated with quality firms, as measured by both accounting and market performance.