Does the quality of company boards have an impact on company performance? This question is important from a governance perspective: Are board structures and organisational processes efficient? How can board capital be measured? Which model allows board capital to be linked to board performance? Based on a doctoral thesis, this book addresses these questions in three chapters and provides innovative answers based on an econometric analysis of Chinese listed companies. The book offers interesting and, to a certain extent, insightful insights into the influence of board structure on many dimensions of economic performance.
Many of the effects are revealing, such as the negative impact of private ownership on growth, which may be due to a public sector risk absorption policy that allows state-owned enterprises to remain in the market even under difficult conditions and reduce their cost of capital. The econometric model shows that diversity promotes transparency and quality, but that erosion occurs with increasing age. It is clear that diversity, particularly with regard to independent and foreign board members, facilitates the publication of reports and improves their quality. Factors that promote human capital increase the intensity of innovation. The average age of the board has a negative effect. This is consistent with the argument that the drive to achieve creative results decreases with age, but not with length of service, which in turn is a factor in building trust.