Behavioural Risks In Corporate Governance

Recent cases of corporate failures, including the fixing of LIBOR rates and money laundering issues in the banking industry, highlight how behavioural issues on the part of company directors are significant contributory factors in corporate governance and the success or failure of companies. This book examines how personality and behavioural issues have contributed to major corporate failures, and how this risk may be managed. The book examines behavioural risks in corporate governance, and evaluates the extent to which risk management mechanisms have acknowledged various aspects of behaviour. Drawing from cases in the UK, the US and Australia and research in psychology and the behavioural sciences, Ngozi Vivian Okoye argues that current corporate governance mechanisms lack provision for identifying and managing personality risks, and suggests how constituent elements of behaviour should be engaged with when developing preventive mechanisms for corporate failures. Okoye presents a conceptual framework for identifying and managing personality risks, and explores how personality risk may be built into corporate governance regulation. The book will be of great use and interest to researchers and practitioners in business and company law, corporate governance, and critical management studies.

The asymmetry of responsibilities between management and corporate governance both for day-to-day operations and the board’s monthly or quarterly review and evaluation remains an unresolved challenge. Expertise in the area of risk management is a fundamental requirement for effective corporate governance, if not by all, certainly by some board members. This means that along with board committees such as "compensation", "audit", "strategy" and several others, "risk management" committees must be established to monitor the likelihood of certain events that may cause the collapse of the firm. Risk Management and Corporate Governance allows academics and practitioners to assess the state of international research in risk management and corporate governance. The chapters overlay the areas of risk management and corporate governance on both financial and operating decisions of a firm while treating legal and political environments as externalities to decisions undertaken.

Corporate governance failures are all too frequent and their patterns and outcomes seem avoidably familiar. This book examines the findings of behavioural finance and economics that are most relevant to governance problems, and suggests potential solutions that are best suited to real-world practice and circumstance. There is a great deal of existing theory that claims to predict the causes and effects of poor governance, and provide solutions. However, the implementation of such measures seems to do little more than merely delay inevitable crises. This book develops a synthesis framework to examine the relative strengths and weaknesses of a behavioural versus deductive approach to understanding the failures of governance. It concludes with a discussion of how corporate governance theory may need to shift going forward, perhaps to include a ‘heterodox’ ecosystem of theoretical paradigms. This book will be of interest to students, researchers and practitioners concerned with corporate governance, economic theory and behavioural economics.

Corporate Boards: Managers of Risk, Sources of Risk dealswith the highly timely topic of the Corporate Board and itsrelationship to risk, both in terms of its management and itscreation. Utilizes a multi-disciplinary perspective which draws on thefields of economics, law, business ethics, and corporate socialresponsibility Features a range of topics including the role of corporateboards in overseeing increasingly complex risk managementtechniques and the ethical dimensions of corporate board behaviorin managing risk Of interest to students, scholars, and firm stakeholders Explores how recent events have also shown that the members ofCorporate Boards can be sources of risk

In reaction to the recent financial crisis and corporate failures at the beginning of the millennium, the emphasis of the business community in corporate governance has shifted towards internal control and risk management issues. As a result, risk management discussion has reached an unprecedented level for academics and practitioners alike. This international, multidisciplinary book provides a comprehensive overview of the risk management landscape, encompassing its challenges and problems and taking stock of its influence on both companies and society as a whole. The eminent contributors review historical and current provisions relating to internal control and risk management in Europe and in the USA. They address the interconnected consequences of the necessity of risk management, and illustrate that a comprehensive approach needs to be further improved. The pros and cons of both the rule-based and the principle-based approaches are analysed, showing that the latter makes it more feasible for sound business practices to be combined with strategic company goals, and for the relationship between entrepreneurial risk taking and sound risk governance management to be in equilibrium. The book also presents a balanced supervision framework, which both promotes prevention of excessive risk taking and tackles risk failure.

"John Zinkin's new book on Challenges in Implementing Corporate Governance is a welcome addition for board members and senior management on how to improve corporate governance in the post-crisis period. John correctly identifies that most boards on underperforming companies have three elements of failure: a lack of proper understanding of the business and its strategy; a total lack of appreciation of both the strategic and systemic risks created by new product markets; and a total failure by boards to ensure that the incentive structures for top management reflect long-term needs rather than short-term profits, thereby putting the company's future at risk. John has written a useful and practical handbook that is a must read for all board members on how to improve corporate governance." —Datuk Seri Panglima Andrew Sheng, Chief Adviser, China Banking Regulatory Commission and the Boards of the Qatar Financial Centre Regulatory Authority , Sime Darby Berhad and Khazanah Nasional "This timely book will interest those wanting to improve corporate governance and risk management. It should also appeal to anyone curious about what caused banks to fail in a number of markets in recent times, and the values which led to this failure. In considering principles which are essential to good governance, ACCA recognizes that corporate governance evolves and improves over time. We accept that organizations in different sectors and across the world operate in diverse environments in terms of culture, regulation, legislation and enforcement. What is appropriate, in terms of governance, for one type of organization will not be appropriate to all organizations. John Zinkin’s book seeks to address this challenge, analyzing the essential cultural and behavioral issues which sit at the heart of the challenges." —Paul Moxey, Head of Risk Management and Corporate Governance, Association of Chartered Certified Accountants "A scholarly combination of practical guidelines and strategic vision." —Lady Sylvia Jay CBE, Vice-Chairman, L'Oreal UK; Independent Director, Alcatel-Lucent, Compagnie de Saint Gobain, Lazard Limited and Carrefour "This is a highly topical and timely publication. Globally, the crisis that has gripped the financial services sector following the failure of well known global banks in recent years has focused attention on corporate governance. To restore confidence in the financial services sector is a long-term goal and effective corporate governance, together with the closely associated topic of risk management, has gripped not only governments and banks, but the public too. In this book, John Zinkin clearly asserts that financial institutions need to exert their responsibilities beyond their shareholders and far more into the wider group of stakeholders, including employees and wider society. In considering issues globally, John provides a book that is not only thought-provoking but pragmatic and useful at a time when stakeholders in our banks need to see real change in transparent, practical ways from those charged with governing our banks." —Ruth Martin, Managing Director, The Chartered Institute of Securities and Investment

Corporate scandals due to bad accounting happen far too frequently for a system of corporate governance to be deemed effective. This book tells why the safeguards designed to prevent bad accounting so often fail. By studying why the auditors and members of a board of directors regularly fail to deliver the truth about a company‘s financ

Corporate Risk and Governance addresses corporate risk management and governance requirements affecting large organizations in all industry sectors and countries. The book strongly advocates implementation of Corporate Governance Codes, ISO 31000 Risk Management, ISO 22301 Business Continuity Management and PAS 200 Crisis Management but warns against treating any standard or model slavishly, as if it can offer easy salvation or a simple route to a risk nirvana. Alan Waring challenges many hallowed beliefs, attitudes and practices that continue to hamper the delivery of effective Enterprise Risk Management (ERM) and thereby good governance. Those boardroom and corporate cultures that are complacent about risk exposures and risk management or, worse, encourage ’chancers’ and a ’what can we get away with’ attitude, are examined in depth along with what is required to embed a culture of responsible risk-taking. Some 75 cases from around the world provide graphic examples and lessons to be learned. Although the text includes some summary practical guidance, this book is designed primarily as a thinking aid rather than a risk management cookbook. It is something to encourage better informed risk-decision making; a more informed view of enterprise risk exposures, control and mitigation issues and an awareness of boardroom and corporate culture issues and their impact on effective ERM.