Exploring the Board Structures and Member Profiles of Top ASX Companies in Australia: An Industry‐level Analysis

• Published in: Australian accounting review 2018-06, Vol.28 (2), p.220-234
• Main Authors: Chandrakumara, A., McCarthy, G., Glynn, J.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Boards of directors; Corporate governance; Scandals
• ISSN: 1035-6908; 1835-2561
• DOI: 10.1111/auar.12177

Using published data from the top 166 ASX companies and 1244 corporate board members, this paper presents an industry‐level analysis of board structures and member profiles, and assesses them in terms of the ASX (2014, 2003) principles and recommendations. The analysis reveals that the average board size was seven, non‐executive director (NED) representation on boards was 70%, women held 14% of seats on corporate boards, 17% of NEDs were women and 2% of firms had chairperson/CEO duality positions. The Financial, Industrial and Energy sectors consisted of a majority of executive directors from business and the accounting field and NEDs from the engineering field with work experience of 20 to 30 years. A greater degree of diversity in the field of study and previous experience in the same and different sectors was found in relation to board members in the majority of industrial sectors. The analysis reveals that board characteristics such as board size, having a clear majority of NEDs on boards, decreasing trends in chairperson/CEO duality position, board member diversity in terms of qualifications and previous experience in the same and different sectors were largely consistent with the ASX principles and corporate governance practices. An industry‐level analysis of the diversity of board structures and profiles of board members of the top 166 companies in Australia tends to indicate positive trends in compliance with the ASX (2014 and 2007) principles and recommendations. The study contributes to the advancement of knowledge pertaining to corporate governance practices associated with board structures and profiles of executive and non‐executive directors.