IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jjrfmx/v14y2021i8p380-d615846.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Do Board Characteristics Matter for Growth Firms? Evidence from China

Author

Listed:
  • Qiuwei Li

    (School of Finance, Renmin University of China, Beijing 100872, China)

  • Wei Zhou

    (School of Finance, Renmin University of China, Beijing 100872, China)

  • Hui Zhou

    (Faculty of Business and Economics, The University of Auckland, Auckland 1010, New Zealand)

  • Jiaxuan Chen

    (Faculty of Business and Economics, The University of Auckland, Auckland 1010, New Zealand)

Abstract

Previous research on the effect of board characteristics mostly examines established firms. This raises the question of whether the findings from the board characteristics literature are applicable to rapidly growing enterprises, as their corporate governance landscape can be very different from that in large, mature companies. Our paper extends the corporate governance literature by investigating the performance implications of board characteristics in startups using a unique set of firms: 121 startups operating in the information technology industry listed on the Growth Enterprise Market (GEM) in China. Using a firm performance indicator constructed through the factor analysis method, we find significant correlations between firm performance and board size, age structure, board meeting frequency, and board ownership of shares. Our findings contribute to the corporate governance literature by shedding new light on the performance implications of board characteristics for startups operating in fast-paced industries.

Suggested Citation

  • Qiuwei Li & Wei Zhou & Hui Zhou & Jiaxuan Chen, 2021. "Do Board Characteristics Matter for Growth Firms? Evidence from China," JRFM, MDPI, vol. 14(8), pages 1-9, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jjrfmx:v:14:y:2021:i:8:p:380-:d:615846
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1911-8074/14/8/380/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1911-8074/14/8/380/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Michael Ewens & Nadya Malenko, 2020. "Board Dynamics over the Startup Life Cycle," NBER Working Papers 27769, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    2. Waelchli, Urs & Zeller, Jonas, 2013. "Old captains at the helm: Chairman age and firm performance," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 37(5), pages 1612-1628.
    3. Ho, Carol-Anne & Williams, S. Mitchell, 2003. "International comparative analysis of the association between board structure and the efficiency of value added by a firm from its physical capital and intellectual capital resources," The International Journal of Accounting, Elsevier, vol. 38(4), pages 465-491.
    4. Ho, Carol-Anne & Williams, S. Mitchell, 2003. "Reply to "International comparative analysis of the association between board structure and the efficiency of value added by a firm from its physical capital and intellectual capital resources: A," The International Journal of Accounting, Elsevier, vol. 38(4), pages 499-502.
    5. Eliezer M. Fich & Anil Shivdasani, 2006. "Are Busy Boards Effective Monitors?," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 61(2), pages 689-724, April.
    6. Jensen, Michael C. & Meckling, William H., 1976. "Theory of the firm: Managerial behavior, agency costs and ownership structure," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 3(4), pages 305-360, October.
    7. Coral B. Ingley & Kevin McCaffrey, 2007. "Effective governance for start-up companies: regarding the board as a strategic resource," International Journal of Business Governance and Ethics, Inderscience Enterprises Ltd, vol. 3(3), pages 308-329.
    8. Boone, Audra L. & Casares Field, Laura & Karpoff, Jonathan M. & Raheja, Charu G., 2007. "The determinants of corporate board size and composition: An empirical analysis," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 85(1), pages 66-101, July.
    9. Chris Mallin & Kean Ow-Yong, 2012. "Factors influencing corporate governance disclosures: evidence from Alternative Investment Market (AIM) companies in the UK," The European Journal of Finance, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 18(6), pages 515-533, July.
    10. Ntim, Collins G., 2011. "The Impact of Corporate Board Meetings on Corporate Performance in South Africa," MPRA Paper 45814, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    11. Field, Laura & Lowry, Michelle & Mkrtchyan, Anahit, 2013. "Are busy boards detrimental?," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 109(1), pages 63-82.
    12. Eisenberg, Theodore & Sundgren, Stefan & Wells, Martin T., 1998. "Larger board size and decreasing firm value in small firms," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 48(1), pages 35-54, April.
    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. Nikhil Ramkrishna Bandodkar & Renu Singh, 2022. "Small and Startup IT Firms, Information Chasms, and the Market for Acquisitions," Businesses, MDPI, vol. 2(3), pages 1-21, September.

    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. Henrique Castro Martins & Cristiano Machado Costa, 2020. "Does control concentration affect board busyness? International evidence," Journal of Management & Governance, Springer;Accademia Italiana di Economia Aziendale (AIDEA), vol. 24(3), pages 821-850, September.
    2. Joohee Park & Chune Young Chung, 2016. "CEO Overconfidence, Leadership Ethics, and Institutional Investors," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(1), pages 1-28, December.
    3. Deloof, Marc & Vermoesen, Veronique, 2016. "The value of corporate boards during the Great Depression in Belgium," Explorations in Economic History, Elsevier, vol. 62(C), pages 108-123.
    4. Thomas D. Shohfi & Roger M. White, 2020. "The dark side of individual blockholder philanthropy," Financial Management, Financial Management Association International, vol. 49(3), pages 741-767, September.
    5. Adams, Mike & Jiang, Wei, 2016. "Do outside directors influence the financial performance of risk-trading firms? Evidence from the United Kingdom (UK) insurance industry," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 64(C), pages 36-51.
    6. Chune Young Chung & Chang Liu & Kainan Wang & Blerina Bela Zykaj, 2015. "Institutional Monitoring: Evidence from the F-Score," Journal of Business Finance & Accounting, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 42(7-8), pages 885-914, September.
    7. John Becker-Blease & Afshad Irani, 2008. "Do corporate governance attributes affect adverse selection costs? Evidence from seasoned equity offerings," Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, Springer, vol. 30(3), pages 281-296, April.
    8. Vincenzo Scafarto & Federica Ricci & Elisabetta Magnaghi & Salvatore Ferri, 2021. "Board structure and intellectual capital efficiency: does the family firm status matter?," Journal of Management & Governance, Springer;Accademia Italiana di Economia Aziendale (AIDEA), vol. 25(3), pages 841-878, September.
    9. Sofia Larmou & Nikos Vafeas, 2010. "The relation between board size and firm performance in firms with a history of poor operating performance," Journal of Management & Governance, Springer;Accademia Italiana di Economia Aziendale (AIDEA), vol. 14(1), pages 61-85, February.
    10. Volonté, Christophe, 2015. "Boards: Independent and committed directors?," International Review of Law and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 41(C), pages 25-37.
    11. Chen, Tao, 2015. "Institutions, board structure, and corporate performance: Evidence from Chinese firms," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 32(C), pages 217-237.
    12. Iwasaki, Ichiro & 岩﨑, 一郎 & イワサキ, イチロウ, 2007. "Endogenous board formation and its determinants in a transition economy: evidence from Russia," CEI Working Paper Series 2007-1, Center for Economic Institutions, Institute of Economic Research, Hitotsubashi University.
    13. Sugato Chakravarty & Chiraphol N. Chiyachantana & Christine Jiang, 2011. "THE CHOICE OF TRADING VENUE AND RELATIVE PRICE IMPACT OF INSTITUTIONAL TRADING: ADRs VERSUS THE UNDERLYING SECURITIES IN THEIR LOCAL MARKETS," Journal of Financial Research, Southern Finance Association;Southwestern Finance Association, vol. 34(4), pages 537-567, December.
    14. Lin, Zhijun & Song, Byron Y. & Tian, Zhimin, 2016. "Does director-level reputation matter? Evidence from bank loan contracting," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 70(C), pages 160-176.
    15. 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.
    16. Ferris, Stephen P. & Jayaraman, Narayanan & Liao, Min-Yu (Stella), 2020. "Better directors or distracted directors? An international analysis of busy boards," Global Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 44(C).
    17. Marwa Elnahass & Kamil Omoteso & Aly Salama & Vu Quang Trinh, 2020. "Differential market valuations of board busyness across alternative banking models," Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, Springer, vol. 55(1), pages 201-238, July.
    18. Chongwoo Choe & Gloria Tian & Xiangkang Yin, 2008. "Managerial Power, Stock-Based Compensation, And Firm Performance: Theory And Evidence," Monash Economics Working Papers 21/08, Monash University, Department of Economics.
    19. Øyvind Bøhren & Siv Staubo, 2016. "Mandatory Gender Balance and Board Independence," European Financial Management, European Financial Management Association, vol. 22(1), pages 3-30, January.
    20. Naeem Tabassum & Satwinder Singh, 2020. "Corporate Governance and Organisational Performance," Springer Books, Springer, number 978-3-030-48527-6, December.

    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:gam:jjrfmx:v:14:y:2021:i:8:p:380-:d:615846. 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: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.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.