Yates, John A. (2010) The influence of entrepreneurship on the relationship between corporate goverence and corporate performance. (DBA thesis), Kingston University, .
Abstract
Three topics very much in the forefront of businessmens' and politicians' minds today are corporate governance, entrepreneurship and corporate performance and the relationship between these three concepts. The terms corporate governance and entrepreneurship would appear to be contradictory when used in the same sentence. Governance is often associated with regulations and control, whereas entrepreneurship is more associated with spontaneity and discovering new ways of creating value. It would seem therefore, that these terms are more mutually exclusive than compatible. This apparent incompatibility is evident in business today. Stakeholders in companies are demanding more accountability in their companies while at the same time demanding consistent, if not, rising returns on their investments. To improve accountability requires the utilisation of increasingly scare resources - the same resources that companies require to improve their financial returns. This author is interested in investigating this apparent incompatibility. Therefore the aim of this thesis is to examine "The influence of entrepreneurship on the relationship between corporate governance and corporate performance". The first step of this research was to examine the relationship between corporate governance and corporate performance. This was done by reviewing the factors that drive corporate governance and understanding how these factors can influence corporate performance. The second step was to examine the effect that entrepreneurship can have on corporate performance and the final step was to assess the effect of entrepreneurship upon corporate governance and corporate performance. This approach was derived from the literature review and the conceptual framework adopted by this author, which was influenced by the work of Shields and TajaIIi (2006). As a result of this approach this author made a number of propositions which formed the basis of the research. In order to research these propositions, the case study methodology was adopted. The applicability of this methodological approach is supported by Yin (2003), Dube and Pare (2003) and Benbasat et al. (1987). To carry out the research six US based high technology companies were selected for in depth research. Data sources were selected primarily from those available in the public domain, due to the fact that a number of the companies researched had ceased trading at the time the research was carried out. The data was collected with a clear understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of each data collection technique. The data was then analysed and the evidence documented. The main theoretical conclusions derived from this research were as follows. It was concluded that corporate governance should be studied in its entirely rather than in its individual constituent components; the role and types of blockholders have changed over time but these changes are not yet adequately understood; traditional methods of aligning the interest of shareholders and management are no longer appropriate and need to be reassessed; there is a need to better understand the role of corporate founders in companies once they are no longer majority shareholders and there is a need to know how to promote and measure entrepreneurship at the individual company level. All these issues have an impact on the corporate governance, entrepreneurship and corporate performance relationship and therefore need to be understood. The main managerial conclusions derived from this research were as follows. The importance of the appointment of Chief Governance Officers at board level was found to be vital. Equal importance needs to be given to all shareholders and not just to the largest shareholders. There is a need for continuity in the boardroom and it is necessary to re-evaluate the form and content of management executive plans. Finally, benchmarks for the measurement of entrepreneurship at the corporate level have yet to be developed.
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