IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/spr/fininn/v7y2021i1d10.1186_s40854-021-00265-x.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Does board gender diversity affect firm performance? Empirical evidence from Standard & Poor’s 500 Information Technology Sector

Author

Listed:
  • Liliana Nicoleta Simionescu

    (Bucharest University of Economic Studies)

  • Ştefan Cristian Gherghina

    (Bucharest University of Economic Studies)

  • Hiba Tawil

    (Bucharest University of Economic Studies)

  • Ziad Sheikha

    (Bucharest University of Economic Studies)

Abstract

The essence of this study is to investigate the influence of the board gender diversity on firms’ accounting and market-based performance using a sample of Standard & Poor’s 500 companies belonging to the information technology sector over 12 years. Using the pooled ordinary least squares (OLS) method, the outcomes provide evidence for a positive influence of women on corporate boards on both measures of company performance, except for the percentage of female executives in the case of return on assets (ROA). After estimating the fixed effects and random-effects through panel data, the econometric outcomes show no statistically significant association among board gender diversity and ROA but a positive influence of the number and percentage of women on board on price-to-earnings ratio.

Suggested Citation

  • Liliana Nicoleta Simionescu & Ştefan Cristian Gherghina & Hiba Tawil & Ziad Sheikha, 2021. "Does board gender diversity affect firm performance? Empirical evidence from Standard & Poor’s 500 Information Technology Sector," Financial Innovation, Springer;Southwestern University of Finance and Economics, vol. 7(1), pages 1-45, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:fininn:v:7:y:2021:i:1:d:10.1186_s40854-021-00265-x
    DOI: 10.1186/s40854-021-00265-x
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://link.springer.com/10.1186/s40854-021-00265-x
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1186/s40854-021-00265-x?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Dadanlar, Hazel H. & Abebe, Michael A., 2020. "Female CEO leadership and the likelihood of corporate diversity misconduct: Evidence from S&P 500 firms," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 118(C), pages 398-405.
    2. Amalia Carrasco & Claude Francoeur & Réal Labelle & Joaquina Laffarga & Emiliano Ruiz-Barbadillo, 2015. "Appointing Women to Boards: Is There a Cultural Bias?," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 129(2), pages 429-444, June.
    3. Alessandra Capezio & Astghik Mavisakalyan, 2016. "Women in the boardroom and fraud: Evidence from Australia," Australian Journal of Management, Australian School of Business, vol. 41(4), pages 719-734, November.
    4. Amy J. Hillman & Albert A. Cannella & Ramona L. Paetzold, 2000. "The Resource Dependence Role of Corporate Directors: Strategic Adaptation of Board Composition in Response to Environmental Change," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 37(2), pages 235-256, March.
    5. Aggarwal, Raj & Jindal, Varun & Seth, Rama, 2019. "Board diversity and firm performance: The role of business group affiliation," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 28(6), pages 1-1.
    6. Renée B. Adams & Patricia Funk, 2012. "Beyond the Glass Ceiling: Does Gender Matter?," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 58(2), pages 219-235, February.
    7. Steven Kaplan & Kurt Pany & Janet Samuels & Jian Zhang, 2009. "An Examination of the Association Between Gender and Reporting Intentions for Fraudulent Financial Reporting," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 87(1), pages 15-30, June.
    8. Bennouri, Moez & Chtioui, Tawhid & Nagati, Haithem & Nekhili, Mehdi, 2018. "Female board directorship and firm performance: What really matters?," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 88(C), pages 267-291.
    9. Chauhan, Yogesh & Dey, Dipanjan Kumar, 2017. "Do female directors really add value in Indian firms?," Journal of Multinational Financial Management, Elsevier, vol. 42, pages 24-36.
    10. Đặng, Rey & Houanti, L’Hocine & Reddy, Krishna & Simioni, Michel, 2020. "Does board gender diversity influence firm profitability? A control function approach," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 90(C), pages 168-181.
    11. Wang, Gang & Holmes, R. Michael & Devine, Richard A. & Bishoff, John, 2018. "CEO gender differences in careers and the moderating role of country culture: A meta-analytic investigation," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 148(C), pages 30-53.
    12. Nina Smith & Valdemar Smith & Mette Verner, 2006. "Do women in top management affect firm performance?A panel study of 2,500 Danish firms," International Journal of Productivity and Performance Management, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 55(7), pages 569-593, October.
    13. Adams, Renée B. & Ferreira, Daniel, 2009. "Women in the boardroom and their impact on governance and performance," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 94(2), pages 291-309, November.
    14. Cristian L. Dezsö & David Gaddis Ross, 2012. "Does female representation in top management improve firm performance? A panel data investigation," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 33(9), pages 1072-1089, September.
    15. Khadija Farrukh & Sadia Irshad & Maria Shams Khakwani & Sadia Ishaque & Nabeel Younus Ansari, 2017. "Impact of dividend policy on shareholders wealth and firm performance in Pakistan," Cogent Business & Management, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 4(1), pages 1408208-140, January.
    16. Dah, Mustafa A. & Jizi, Mohammad I. & Kebbe, Reem, 2020. "CEO gender and managerial entrenchment," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 54(C).
    17. Kang, Eugene & Ding, David K. & Charoenwong, Charlie, 2010. "Investor reaction to women directors," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 63(8), pages 888-894, August.
    18. Bhuiyan, Md. Borhan Uddin & Rahman, Asheq & Sultana, Nigar, 2020. "Female tainted directors, financial reporting quality and audit fees," Journal of Contemporary Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 16(2).
    19. Nuria Reguera-Alvarado & Pilar Fuentes & Joaquina Laffarga, 2017. "Does Board Gender Diversity Influence Financial Performance? Evidence from Spain," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 141(2), pages 337-350, March.
    20. Maximiliano González & Alexander Guzmán & Eduardo Pablo & María Andrea Trujillo, 2020. "Does gender really matter in the boardroom? Evidence from closely held family firms," Review of Managerial Science, Springer, vol. 14(1), pages 221-267, February.
    21. Huang, Jiekun & Kisgen, Darren J., 2013. "Gender and corporate finance: Are male executives overconfident relative to female executives?," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 108(3), pages 822-839.
    22. David A. Carter & Betty J. Simkins & W. Gary Simpson, 2003. "Corporate Governance, Board Diversity, and Firm Value," The Financial Review, Eastern Finance Association, vol. 38(1), pages 33-53, February.
    23. Ibhagui, Oyakhilome W. & Olokoyo, Felicia O., 2018. "Leverage and firm performance: New evidence on the role of firm size," The North American Journal of Economics and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 45(C), pages 57-82.
    24. Jiatao Li & J. Richard Harrison, 2008. "National Culture and the Composition and Leadership Structure of Boards of Directors," Corporate Governance: An International Review, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 16(5), pages 375-385, September.
    25. repec:hal:journl:hal-02312104 is not listed on IDEAS
    26. Torchia, Mariateresa & Calabrò, Andrea & Gabaldon, Patricia & Kanadli, Sadi Bogac, 2018. "Women directors contribution to organizational innovation: A behavioral approach," Scandinavian Journal of Management, Elsevier, vol. 34(2), pages 215-224.
    27. Ahmadi, Ali & Nakaa, Nejia & Bouri, Abdelfettah, 2018. "Chief Executive Officer attributes, board structures, gender diversity and firm performance among French CAC 40 listed firms," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 44(C), pages 218-226.
    28. Liu, Yu & Wei, Zuobao & Xie, Feixue, 2014. "Do women directors improve firm performance in China?," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 28(C), pages 169-184.
    29. Mihaela Ionascu & Ion Ionascu & Marian Sacarin & Mihaela Minu, 2018. "Women on Boards and Financial Performance: Evidence from a European Emerging Market," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(5), pages 1-18, May.
    30. Chen, Jie & Leung, Woon Sau & Evans, Kevin P., 2018. "Female board representation, corporate innovation and firm performance," Journal of Empirical Finance, Elsevier, vol. 48(C), pages 236-254.
    31. Wenge Wang, 2014. "Independent Directors and Corporate Performance in China: a Meta-Empirical Study," Proceedings of Economics and Finance Conferences 0401247, International Institute of Social and Economic Sciences.
    32. Zeeshan Mahmood & Rehana Kouser & Waris Ali & Zubair Ahmad & Tahira Salman, 2018. "Does Corporate Governance Affect Sustainability Disclosure? A Mixed Methods Study," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(1), pages 1-20, January.
    33. Hiroaki Niikura & Miki Seko, 2020. "The effect of inside and outside female directors on firm performance: comparison of the First section, Second section, Mothers, and Jasdaq in the Tokyo Stock Exchange Market," International Journal of Economic Policy Studies, Springer, vol. 14(1), pages 123-166, February.
    34. Triana, María del Carmen & Richard, Orlando C. & Su, Weichieh, 2019. "Gender diversity in senior management, strategic change, and firm performance: Examining the mediating nature of strategic change in high tech firms," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 48(7), pages 1681-1693.
    35. Angelo A. Unite & Michael J. Sullivan & Ailyn A. Shi, 2019. "Board Diversity and Performance of Philippine Firms: Do Women Matter?," International Advances in Economic Research, Springer;International Atlantic Economic Society, vol. 25(1), pages 65-78, February.
    36. Aruoriwo Marian Chijoke-Mgbame & Agyenim Boateng & Chijoke Oscar Mgbame, 2020. "Board gender diversity, audit committee and financial performance: evidence from Nigeria," Accounting Forum, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 44(3), pages 262-286, July.
    37. K Praveen Parboteeah & Martin Hoegl & John B Cullen, 2008. "Managers' gender role attitudes: a country institutional profile approach," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 39(5), pages 795-813, July.
    38. Chen, Ru & Tong, Jamie Yixing & Zhang, Feida (Frank) & Zhou, Gaoguang (Stephen), 2021. "Do female directors enhance R&D performance?," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 74(C), pages 253-275.
    39. Mobbs, Shawn & Tan, Yongxian & Zhang, Shage, 2021. "Female directors: Why are some less informed than others?," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 68(C).
    40. Lívia Markoczy & Sunny Li Sun & Jigao Zhu, 2020. "Few Women on Boards: What’s Identity Got to Do With It?," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 165(2), pages 311-327, August.
    41. Elise Perrault, 2015. "Why Does Board Gender Diversity Matter and How Do We Get There? The Role of Shareholder Activism in Deinstitutionalizing Old Boys’ Networks," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 128(1), pages 149-165, April.
    42. Rey Đặng & L’hocine Houanti & Krishna Reddy & Michel Simioni, 2020. "Does board gender diversity influence firm profitability? A control function approach," Post-Print hal-02618276, HAL.
    43. Peng, Congmin & She, Po-Wen, 2020. "Are women less likely to be managers in the UK labour market?," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 85(C), pages 317-324.
    44. Gruenfeld, Deborah H & Mannix, Elizabeth A. & Williams, Katherine Y. & Neale, Margaret A., 1996. "Group Composition and Decision Making: How Member Familiarity and Information Distribution Affect Process and Performance," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 67(1), pages 1-15, July.
    45. Farheen Akram & Muhammad Abrar ul Haq & Vinodh K Natarajan & R. Stephen Chellakan, 2020. "Board heterogeneity and corporate performance: An insight beyond agency issues," Cogent Business & Management, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 7(1), pages 1809299-180, January.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Chengpeng Zhu & Muhammad Husnain & Saif Ullah & Muhammad Tasnim Khan & Waris Ali, 2022. "Gender Diversity and Firms’ Sustainable Performance: Moderating Role of CEO Duality in Emerging Equity Market," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(12), pages 1-26, June.
    2. Charalampos Basdekis & Ioannis Katsampoxakis & Konstantinos Anathreptakis, 2023. "Women’s Participation in Firms’ Management and Their Impact on Financial Performance: Pre-COVID-19 and COVID-19 Period Evidence," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(11), pages 1-17, May.
    3. Halit Gonenc & Antonina V. Krasnikova, 2022. "Board Gender Diversity and Voluntary Carbon Emission Disclosure," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(21), pages 1-18, November.
    4. Tanveer Bagh & Muhammad Asif Khan & Natanya Meyer & Hammad Riaz, 2023. "Impact of boardroom diversity on corporate financial performance," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 10(1), pages 1-13, December.
    5. Kou, Gang & Yüksel, Serhat & Dinçer, Hasan, 2022. "Inventive problem-solving map of innovative carbon emission strategies for solar energy-based transportation investment projects," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 311(C).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Nguyen, Thi Hong Hanh & Ntim, Collins G. & Malagila, John K., 2020. "Women on corporate boards and corporate financial and non-financial performance: A systematic literature review and future research agenda," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 71(C).
    2. Nguyen, Tuan & Nguyen, An & Nguyen, Mau & Truong, Thuyen, 2021. "Is national governance quality a key moderator of the boardroom gender diversity–firm performance relationship? International evidence from a multi-hierarchical analysis," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 73(C), pages 370-390.
    3. Tleubayev, Alisher & Bobojonov, Ihtiyor & Gagalyuk, Taras & Glauben, Thomas, 2020. "Board gender diversity and firm performance: Evidence from the Russian agri-food industry," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 23(1), pages 35-53.
    4. McGuinness, Paul B., 2021. "Board member age, stock seasoning and the evolution of capital structure in Chinese firms," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 30(3).
    5. Chengpeng Zhu & Muhammad Husnain & Saif Ullah & Muhammad Tasnim Khan & Waris Ali, 2022. "Gender Diversity and Firms’ Sustainable Performance: Moderating Role of CEO Duality in Emerging Equity Market," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(12), pages 1-26, June.
    6. Girardone, Claudia & Kokas, Sotirios & Wood, Geoffrey, 2021. "Diversity and women in finance: Challenges and future perspectives," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 71(C).
    7. Franco Ernesto Rubino & Paolo Tenuta & Domenico Rocco Cambrea, 2017. "Board characteristics effects on performance in family and non-family business: a multi-theoretical approach," Journal of Management & Governance, Springer;Accademia Italiana di Economia Aziendale (AIDEA), vol. 21(3), pages 623-658, September.
    8. Tanaka, Takanori, 2019. "Gender diversity on Japanese corporate boards," Journal of the Japanese and International Economies, Elsevier, vol. 51(C), pages 19-31.
    9. Bjuggren, Per-Olof & Nordström, Louise & Palmberg, Johanna, 2015. "Efficiency of Female Leaders in Family and Non-Family Firms," Ratio Working Papers 259, The Ratio Institute.
    10. Cardillo, Giovanni & Onali, Enrico & Torluccio, Giuseppe, 2021. "Does gender diversity on banks' boards matter? Evidence from public bailouts," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 71(C).
    11. Kyunga Na & Kwangsoo Shin, 2019. "The Gender Effect on a Firm’s Innovative Activities in the Emerging Economies," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(7), pages 1-24, April.
    12. Sultan Sikandar Mirza & Muhammad Ansar Majeed & Tanveer Ahsan, 2020. "Board gender diversity, competitive pressure and investment efficiency in Chinese private firms," Post-Print hal-02956320, HAL.
    13. Usama Laique & Fahad Abdullah & Ijaz Ur Rehman & Bruno S. Sergi, 2023. "Two decades of research on board gender diversity and financial outcomes: Mapping heterogeneity and future research agenda," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 30(5), pages 2121-2144, September.
    14. Đặng, Rey & Houanti, L’Hocine & Reddy, Krishna & Simioni, Michel, 2020. "Does board gender diversity influence firm profitability? A control function approach," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 90(C), pages 168-181.
    15. Anda Adelina Suciu & Dragoș Păun & Florin Sebastian Duma, 2021. "Sustainability of Financial Performance in Relation to Gender Diverse Boards: A Comparative Analysis of French and Romanian Listed Companies on Stock Exchanges," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(18), pages 1-20, September.
    16. Nitesh Pandey & Satish Kumar & Corinne Post & John W. Goodell & Rebeca García-Ramos, 2023. "Board gender diversity and firm performance: A complexity theory perspective," Asia Pacific Journal of Management, Springer, vol. 40(3), pages 1289-1320, September.
    17. Laura Cabeza-García & Esther B. Brío & Carlos Rueda, 2021. "The moderating effect of innovation on the gender and performance relationship in the outset of the gender revolution," Review of Managerial Science, Springer, vol. 15(3), pages 755-778, April.
    18. Sultan Sikandar Mirza & Muhammad Ansar Majeed & Tanveer Ahsan, 2020. "Board gender diversity, competitive pressure and investment efficiency in Chinese private firms," Eurasian Business Review, Springer;Eurasia Business and Economics Society, vol. 10(3), pages 417-440, September.
    19. Aruoriwo Marian Chijoke-Mgbame & Agyenim Boateng & Chijoke Oscar Mgbame, 2020. "Board gender diversity, audit committee and financial performance: evidence from Nigeria," Accounting Forum, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 44(3), pages 262-286, July.
    20. Akshita Arora, 2022. "Gender diversity in boardroom and its impact on firm performance," Journal of Management & Governance, Springer;Accademia Italiana di Economia Aziendale (AIDEA), vol. 26(3), pages 735-755, September.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:spr:fininn:v:7:y:2021:i:1:d:10.1186_s40854-021-00265-x. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.springer.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.