Abstract

We examine the relationship between the gender and ethnic minority diversity of the board of directors and the financial performance of the firm, in other words, the economic case for a diverse board of directors. The research is unique because we analyze both the diversity of the board and the diversity of important board committees to gain greater insight into the way diversity affects board functions and, ultimately, shareholder value. Our sample consists of all firms listed on the Fortune 500 over the period 1998-2002 yielding a panel of data with approximately 2,000 firm years. The results of three-stage least-squares estimation support the conclusion that board diversity has a positive effect on financial performance as measured by Tobin’s q. The evidence on board committees indicates that gender diversity has a positive effect on financial performance primarily through the audit function of the board and ethnic diversity impacts financial performance through all three functions of the board we investigated, audit, executive compensation, and director nomination.

Citations