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Controlling shareholders and the composition of the board: special focus on family firms

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  • Isabel Acero
  • Nuria Alcalde

Abstract

This article analyses the relevance of the agency problems that exist between shareholders and managers (type I agency problems) and between majority and minority shareholders (type II agency problems), in determining the composition of the board of directors, differentiating between family owned and non-family owned firms. The hypotheses are tested on a sample of 173 Spanish listed companies for the period 2004–2011. The results of our study indicate that, on one hand, as type I agency problems increase, firms increase their percentage of outside directors and, on the other, as type II agency problems increase, firms increase the ratio of independent to nominee directors. Whether the company is a family firm or not does moderate the influence of insider ownership over the composition of the board. Generally speaking, our findings support the view that firms configure their board of directors in such a way as to best signal to the market both efficient management and a balance of the interests of all shareholders. Likewise, these results could be taken into account when formulating recommendations on the composition of the board of directors. Copyright Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2016

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  • Isabel Acero & Nuria Alcalde, 2016. "Controlling shareholders and the composition of the board: special focus on family firms," Review of Managerial Science, Springer, vol. 10(1), pages 61-83, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:rvmgts:v:10:y:2016:i:1:p:61-83
    DOI: 10.1007/s11846-014-0140-x
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    2. Juan Diego Alzate-G mez & Di genes Lagos Cort s & Percy Marquina Fieldman, 2020. "Corporate Social Responsibility Practices and Economic Performance in Colombia: The Moderating Effect of Family Control," International Journal of Economics and Financial Issues, Econjournals, vol. 10(1), pages 6-18.
    3. del Carmen Briano-Turrent, Guadalupe & Poletti-Hughes, Jannine, 2017. "Corporate governance compliance of family and non-family listed firms in emerging markets: Evidence from Latin America," Journal of Family Business Strategy, Elsevier, vol. 8(4), pages 237-247.
    4. Giovanni Bronzetti & Stefania Veltri & Romilda Mazzotta, 2016. "Editorial: Is There Still Something to Learn about the Association of Corporate Governance with Firm Performance?," International Journal of Business and Management, Canadian Center of Science and Education, vol. 11(10), pages 306-306, September.
    5. Georgiou, Thoukis & Papasolomou, Ioanna & Vrontis, Demetris & Thrassou, Alkis, 2023. "Market-oriented succession effectiveness in family business – Case-based evidence from Cyprus family-owned wine business," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 165(C).
    6. Jiaying Fan & Kai Wang & Lidong Wu, 2023. "Monitoring the Type I Agency Problem or the Type II Agency Problem? Directors Appointed by Non-State Shareholders and the CEO Turnover–Performance Sensitivity," Emerging Markets Finance and Trade, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 59(7), pages 2160-2189, May.
    7. Stewart, Alex, 2020. "Family control, ambivalence, and preferential benefits," Journal of Family Business Strategy, Elsevier, vol. 11(4).
    8. Tahir Akhtar & Mohammad Ali Tareq & Kashif Rashid, 2021. "Chief Executive Officers’ monitoring, board effectiveness, managerial ownership, and cash holdings: evidence from ASEAN," Review of Managerial Science, Springer, vol. 15(8), pages 2193-2238, November.
    9. Stefania Veltri & Romilda Mazzotta, 2016. "The Association of Board Composition, Intellectual Capital and Firm Performance in a High Ownership Concentration Context: Evidence from Italy," International Journal of Business and Management, Canadian Center of Science and Education, vol. 11(10), pages 317-317, September.
    10. Regina M. Lizares, 2022. "Ownership concentration and board structure: Alignment and entrenchment effects in an emerging market," Managerial and Decision Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 43(6), pages 2557-2569, September.
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Ownership concentration; Board of directors; Family firms; Agency problems in family firms; Expropriation risks in family firms; G32; G34;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • G32 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Financing Policy; Financial Risk and Risk Management; Capital and Ownership Structure; Value of Firms; Goodwill
    • G34 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Mergers; Acquisitions; Restructuring; Corporate Governance

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