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Board structures and board behaviour: A cross-country comparison of privately held SMEs in Belgium, The Netherlands and Norway

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Author

Summary, in English

In this study, we examine and compare formal board structures and actual board behaviour in privately held SMEs. We integrate and build on ideas from institutional theory and the behavioural theory of the firm to propose that privately held firms have specific governance needs that 'decouple' formal board structures from actual board behaviour. Following this logic, we expect board structures to vary across countries while board behaviour does not. We test this in a cross–country sample of SMEs in Belgium, the Netherlands and Norway. The empirical results support the proposition that board structures are largely decoupled from actual board behaviour in privately held SMEs. Overall, the findings imply that it is possible to coordinate and disseminate board development research and practice across countries despite national differences in formal board structures.

Publishing year

2014

Language

English

Pages

197-219

Publication/Series

International Journal of Business Governance and Ethics

Volume

9

Issue

2

Document type

Journal article

Publisher

Inderscience Publishers

Topic

  • Social Sciences Interdisciplinary
  • Economics and Business
  • Business Administration

Status

Published

ISBN/ISSN/Other

  • ISSN: 1477-9048