1,720,978 research outputs found
L’autovalutazione del board nelle societa’ quotate. Riflessioni di sintesi nel contesto nazionale
No full textUnlocking success: exploring the relationship between multiple CSR initiatives, firm performance and the role of the regional quality of government
No full textPurposeFollowing signalling theory, this paper aims to study the impact of multiple corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives on firm performance, by considering commitment to the United Nations Global Compact (UNGC), the Occupational Health and Safety Assessment Series (OHSAS) 18001 and environmental commitment such as Kyoto Protocol or Paris Agreement, for a sample of Italian-listed companies. Through the adoption of contingency theory, the paper also aims to study whether the impact of CSR initiatives is moderated by the following contextual factors: quality of government, impartiality and corruption of the region. Information on CSR initiatives is obtained through a manual content analysis of companies' disclosure.Design/methodology/approachStudying a sample of Italian-listed companies, information on CSR initiatives is obtained through a manual content analysis of companies' sustainability or integrated reports. The authors run ordinary least square regressions to test research questions.FindingsResults show that OHSAS 18001 has a positive influence on both sales growth and profitability when held alone. When the focus is on one single initiative, stakeholders tend to attribute more value to signals of the social dimension. This evaluation can be enhanced by combining OHSAS 18001 with firm commitment to UNGC and/or the Kyoto Protocol or Paris Agreement. By signalling a more comprehensive approach to CSR, firms can obtain reputational growth, which can generate competitive advantage. Finally, in regions with low corruption, high impartiality and high government quality, CSR initiatives are considered as more reliable signals, which further enhances firms' performance.Practical implicationsThese results may have practical implication for managers as they confirm that using OHSAS 18001 certification ensures better performance. However, signalling commitment to a specific CSR initiative does not automatically imply an improvement in performance. Indeed, companies need to approach CSR initiatives in a strategic manner and may need to adjust their structure and philosophy to the principle of the initiative. Using a certification scheme has specific costs, which need to be considered.Social implicationsFindings show that the impact of CSR initiatives is affected by contextual factors such as the quality of government. Knowing this, firms could not be interested in sustainable practices in regions with low quality of government. In this sense, policymakers and regulators should enhance the quality of their activity to improve the foster firms' commitment to CSR. A higher firms' commitment can be beneficial to the entire community.Originality/valueTo the best of the authors' knowledge, this paper is the first attempt to identify how the combination of multiple CSR initiatives affects corporate performance. In addition, this paper analyses the impact of commitment towards global environmental policies on firms' performance. Then, the authors offer insights about if and how regional differences in terms of quality of government can moderate these impacts
Does corporate governance matter in corporate social responsibility disclosure? Evidence from Italy in the “era of sustainability”
Full text linkCorporate Governance (CG) has long been the subject of interest for researchers in business administration. Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) practices decided by Boards of Directors have become a key issue in the decision making process of companies. In this scenario, it is interesting to focus on the relationship between CG structure and CSR policies have become a key issue to define the “strategic view” of the company. In particular, we identify how the characteristics of CG impact on CSR Disclosure.
Findings show that a large board of directors reduces the probability of following practices which involve stakeholders more closely in company activity; while companies with more independent directors have a higher level of stakeholder protection almost by definition, and there is need for additional ways of involving stakeholders in company activity. Our results also confirm that overlap between the role of CEO and Chairman is undesirable in issuing CSR Report
Mandatory gender quotas: the impact on board and committee meetings
No full textPurposeThis study aims to test whether the introduction of a gender quota impacts functioning of boards of directors and internal committees thanks to female capacity in effort norms, cognitive conflicts and use of skills. Design/methodology/approachThis paper uses a difference-in-differences method to trace the staggered mandatory adoption of gender quotas on boards on Italian listed firms, representing the regulative institution pillar of institutional theory. FindingsThis paper find that mandatory adopter firms have more frequent internal committee meetings and less frequent board of directors' meetings after the introduction of the law. This confirms that the regulation re-prioritizes work in internal committees, thanks to women effort, capacity to resolution and use of skills. Originality/valueThis research provides empirical evidence on female contribution and on the impact that a specific mandatory regulation, as regulative institutional pillar, can have on board organization, showing how gender characteristics influence board functioning in terms of meetings
BOARD OF DIRECTORS, BOARD OF STATUTORY AUDITORS’ DIVERSITY AND EARNINGS MANAGEMENT: EVIDENCE FROM ITALY
No full textGender Diversity in Audit Partners and Audit Efforts
No full textThe research uses regression models and panel data related to audit fees, audit hours and corporate governance. The sample of listed firms yields 751 firms-years observations for the period 2010-2018. We study how gender diversity among audit partners, Chief Executive Officers, and Boards of Directors impact on audit fees and audit hours. We focus on the interaction between auditors and management. We find that female audit partners is associated with lower audit fees and audit hours. Next, we find that female audit partner significantly affects the association with the audit efforts in interaction with management, but when the audit partner is male, audit efforts are also determined by the female representation on the Board of Directors. We contribute to literature on the effects of gender diversity in auditing and corporate governance. We also enrich the concept of audit efforts by including audit hours as well as audit fees. Finally, the research answers the call for empirical study on the effects of gender diversity in management-auditor interaction
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