International Journal of Business Governance and Ethics, 2014
ABSTRACT In this study, we examine and compare formal board structures and actual board behaviour... more ABSTRACT 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.
Building on the resource-based view (RBV) of the firm, this paper suggests that a family firm’s l... more Building on the resource-based view (RBV) of the firm, this paper suggests that a family firm’s long-term orientation (LTO) can be an important resource that increases firm-level entrepreneurial orientation (EO). Nevertheless, resource orchestration suggests that managers need to orchestrate their resources in order to realize any potential advantage. Therefore, we hypothesize that a family firm’s LTO entails potential resources to engage in entrepreneurial activities, while a participative decision making (PDM) style serves as coordinating mechanism that helps the firm to manage these resources. Using data from 209 private family firms, the results show a positive association between LTO and EO. Also, PDM was found to positively moderate the LTO-EO relationship, providing empirical support for our central hypothesis.
ABSTRACT Prior cross-country governance studies mainly built on agency theory’s governance model.... more ABSTRACT Prior cross-country governance studies mainly built on agency theory’s governance model. Recently, the use of this theoretical perspective has been criticized from both institutional theory as well as the behavioural perspective. Institutional theory would predict that a significant part of the variation in board behaviour could be attributed to the institutional context of a country. In contrast, the behavioural perspective follows the reasoning that board behaviour is expected to be determined by firm-specific challenges and needs rather than the broader institutional context and hence, predicts that the institutional context of a country does not explain variation in actual board behaviour. The aim of this study is to examine the empirical validity of these opposing predictions about board behaviour. Using a database of SMEs of three countries with a different governance system (Belgium, the Netherlands and Norway), our statistical analyses mainly support the predictions of the behavioural perspective.
Previous empirical research has devoted little effort on the role and determinants of business co... more Previous empirical research has devoted little effort on the role and determinants of business collateral and personal commitments in the credit acquisition process, even though this is a common feature of small business credit contracts. We modelled the collateralisation decision as a ...
International Journal of Business Governance and Ethics, 2014
ABSTRACT In this study, we examine and compare formal board structures and actual board behaviour... more ABSTRACT 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.
International Journal of Business Governance and Ethics, 2014
ABSTRACT In this study, we examine and compare formal board structures and actual board behaviour... more ABSTRACT 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.
Building on the resource-based view (RBV) of the firm, this paper suggests that a family firm’s l... more Building on the resource-based view (RBV) of the firm, this paper suggests that a family firm’s long-term orientation (LTO) can be an important resource that increases firm-level entrepreneurial orientation (EO). Nevertheless, resource orchestration suggests that managers need to orchestrate their resources in order to realize any potential advantage. Therefore, we hypothesize that a family firm’s LTO entails potential resources to engage in entrepreneurial activities, while a participative decision making (PDM) style serves as coordinating mechanism that helps the firm to manage these resources. Using data from 209 private family firms, the results show a positive association between LTO and EO. Also, PDM was found to positively moderate the LTO-EO relationship, providing empirical support for our central hypothesis.
ABSTRACT Prior cross-country governance studies mainly built on agency theory’s governance model.... more ABSTRACT Prior cross-country governance studies mainly built on agency theory’s governance model. Recently, the use of this theoretical perspective has been criticized from both institutional theory as well as the behavioural perspective. Institutional theory would predict that a significant part of the variation in board behaviour could be attributed to the institutional context of a country. In contrast, the behavioural perspective follows the reasoning that board behaviour is expected to be determined by firm-specific challenges and needs rather than the broader institutional context and hence, predicts that the institutional context of a country does not explain variation in actual board behaviour. The aim of this study is to examine the empirical validity of these opposing predictions about board behaviour. Using a database of SMEs of three countries with a different governance system (Belgium, the Netherlands and Norway), our statistical analyses mainly support the predictions of the behavioural perspective.
Previous empirical research has devoted little effort on the role and determinants of business co... more Previous empirical research has devoted little effort on the role and determinants of business collateral and personal commitments in the credit acquisition process, even though this is a common feature of small business credit contracts. We modelled the collateralisation decision as a ...
International Journal of Business Governance and Ethics, 2014
ABSTRACT In this study, we examine and compare formal board structures and actual board behaviour... more ABSTRACT 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.
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Papers by Wim Voordeckers