Mechanisms to promote board gender diversity in South Africa
Mechanisms to promote board gender diversity in South Africa
复制标题
促进南非董事会性别多样性的机制
DOI：
10.4102/ac.v17i1.489
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发表时间：
2017
期刊：
影响因子：
--
通讯作者：
Rebecca Fawcett
中科院分区：
文献类型：
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作者：
S. Viviers;Nadia Mans;Rebecca Fawcett
研究目的：董事会性别多样性正在全球和南非获得越来越多的关注。虽然在约翰内斯堡证券交易所(JSE)上市的公司董事会中有更多的女性，但她们只占所有董事的大约五分之一。这种情况反映了国际趋势。对现有文献的回顾发现，增加女性董事任命的三个突出机制，即强制性董事会性别配额、自愿目标和股东行动主义。作者对这三种机制进行了批判性的评估，目的是提出最适合南非的机制。这项研究的动机：这项研究是考虑到对三种变化机制缺乏比较研究，以及需要在南非促进董事会性别多样性的情况下进行的。研究设计：采用判断和滚雪球抽样的方法确定经验丰富的本地资产经理样本。进行了半结构化的个人访谈，以评估这些人对这些变化机制在南非的适用性的看法。定性数据采用主题分析方法进行分析。主要发现：尽管参与者承认董事会女性董事代表的重要性，但在2011-2016年间，他们中没有人就这一主题与被投资公司进行过接触。这项研究提供的证据表明，在南非，立法是促进董事会性别多样性的最不受欢迎的机制。自愿目标和来自股东的公开压力可能会更有效。贡献：虽然现有的研究主要集中在董事会性别多样性的理论基础上，但这项研究更进一步，调查了促进女性董事会代表性的三个重要机制。对关于多样性管理的知识体系作出了贡献。提供了针对具体情况的建议。
Research purpose: Board gender diversity is gaining increasing attention globally and in South Africa. Although more women are serving on the boards of companies listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE), they only represent approximately one-fifth of all directors. This situation mirrors international trends. A review of the extant literature revealed three prominent mechanisms to increase the appointment of female directors, namely mandatory board gender quotas, voluntary targets and shareholder activism. The authors critically evaluated these three mechanisms with the aim of suggesting the most appropriate ones in the South African context. Motivation for the study: The study was undertaken given the paucity of comparative research on the three change mechanisms and the need to promote greater board gender diversity in South Africa. Research design: Judgement and snowball sampling were used to identify a sample of experienced local asset managers. Semi-structured personal interviews were conducted to gauge these individuals’ views on the applicability of these change mechanisms in South Africa. The qualitative data were analysed using thematic analysis. Key findings: Although the participants acknowledged the importance of board gender female board representation, none of them have engaged investee companies on the topic over the period 2011–2016. This study provides evidence that legislation is the least preferred mechanism to promote board gender diversity in South Africa. Voluntary targets and public pressure from shareholders might be more effective. Contribution: Whereas existing research mainly centres on the rationale for board gender diversity, this study goes a step further by investigating three prominent mechanisms to promote female board representation. A contribution is made to the body of knowledge on diversity management. Context-specific recommendations are offered.