Aymen AMMARI

The purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of board structure on the performance of French firms in the presence of several monitoring committees. We studied 80 publicly listed French firms spanning from 2001 to 2013. We concluded that large board size has a negative effect on market performance. While large board size in combination with the existence of at least three committees enhances accounting performance and does not have any impact on market performance, the existence of a board dominated by independent directors with the presence of at least three committees seems to have only a negative impact on accounting performance. Our findings indicate that monitoring committees are beneficial for shareholders only for corporations with a large board size.

Many studies have investigated the relationship between women on corporate boards (WOCB) and firm performance in accordance with the ‘business case’ for board gender diversity. However, these have been conducted on large firms. This study re-examines this relationship for a sample of French listed SMEs over the period 2010–2014 using a dynamic panel GMM estimator to mitigate endogeneity issues. We find that the percentage of WOCB is positively and significantly related to firm performance. However, the other proxies for board gender diversity are not statistically different from zero. We argue that the relationship is not straightforward. This finding is interesting as it sheds light on the ‘business case’.

This paper analyzes the relationship between bank governance mechanisms and credit risk in the MENA region. Methodology: Fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA) was used to analyze a sample of 38 commercial MENA banks for the period 2004-2015. Findings: We confirm that different combinations of governance mechanisms can yield similar levels of credit risk taking. A single board characteristic is not sufficient to explain the credit policy of MENA banks. The independence of the board appears to be a necessary condition for reducing credit risk. The high proportion of institutional directors is associated with higher credit risk taking. In addition, we find that CEO duality and the high proportion of foreign directors were substitutes for one another. Originality: This research presents an application analysis of fsQCA in the MENA region. We examine the role of optimal configurations of the boards of directors of MENA banks. Unlike techniques previously used to investigate bank governance, such as multiple regression analysis, the fsQCA approach reveals which governance practices are relevant, and which are redundant, for achieving effective control in credit risk management.

Drawing from a sample of French companies that made up the SBF 120 index over the period 2006–2010 (before the enactment of the Copé–Zimmermann law on gender quotas on boards), this paper investigates the relationship between board gender diversity and firm risk-taking (measured by the variability of the return on assets). Using a generalized method of moments estimation, no evidence is found to support the assumption of a significant relationship between women on corporate boards and firm risk-taking. These results potentially can be relevant for policy makers and academic research.

Investigating a sample of firms from the S&P 500 Index (between 2004 and 2015), the paper addresses the relationship between the representation of Women on Corporate Boards (WOCB) and the Corporate Social Performance (CSP). It adopts the instrumental variable quantile regression panel data (IV-QRPD) model, suggested by Powell (2016), to solve endogeneity and heterogeneity issues. The article shows a strong “threshold effect”: the impact of board feminization on CSP is nonlinear and changes along the quantiles of the performance distribution. Highlighting a contextual and multilevel phenomenon, the paper contributes to the CG literature offering main achievements on board's dynamics and inclusiveness.

Hedge fund activism and firm characteristics can be combined to explain targets' engagements in innovative activities. The “difference in difference” regression framework is first performed and shows that target firms experience an improvement in innovation efficiency due to the presence of hedge funds (HFs) activists. The fuzzy set Qualitative Comparative Analysis (fsQCA) perspective, is used, on the HF activism‐technological innovation relationship, which recognizes the existence of conjunctural causation. The main sets from fsQCA leading to high/presence innovation input/output display the presence of activist HFs combined to target mature firms, low leveraged ones, firms performing structural changes, and/or those that better refocus on their core innovation expertise and technologies in these areas.

Hedge funds' engagements do not cause value‐enhancing as acknowledged by previous research; new insights highlight how distinct strategies combine into configurational causes of value improvement of the two common short‐run and long‐run forms of market reactions. Qualitative comparative analysis is applied and uncovers several equifinal configurations associated with value creation. The results reveal that the hostility of hedge funds' tactics is a necessary condition or, in other words, a prerequisite for high short/long term abnormal returns. Corporate governance changes, financial restructurings and hostility of tactics are sufficient conditions or, in other words, a guarantee for high‐value enhancement. The findings indicate substitutive and complimentary relationships between different tactics and high short/long‐run market reaction, suggesting the complexities of value creation.