Corporate boards and governance

Abstract

Many developing countries have in recent times opened up their economies to varying degrees, bringing in much-needed competition.Such liberalisation measures and the concomitant thrust to globalise bring in their wake a large scale corporatisation of business, enlarging the gap between their control and management.In these circumstances, how do shareholders and other stakeholders ensure their interests receive the attention and consideration they deserve? Boards of Directors are charged with the responsibility of stewarding the affairs of their companies, in a just and equitable manner that will achieve these desired goals, without impeding the entrepreneurial initiaves of the managers to deliver. In walking this tight rope, the character and capability of the Board itself are put on trial. This book is about good Corporate Governance, helping the Board to equip itself to discharge its increasingly onerous responsibilities, coping with the uneasy interface between the company`s Board and its CEO, and above all, combining business with ethics. Companies that act with foresight in this emerging scenario will be truly better armed for the tough competitive future ahead than those that dismiss such issues as of no immediate relevance.