Corporate Governance Practices in Listed State-owned Enterprises in India: An Empirical Research

Abstract

Abstract Corporate Governance (CG) refers to a system in which corporations are directed and controlled. The governance structure specifies the distribution of rights and responsibilities among different participants in the corporation and specifies the rules and procedures for making decisions in corporates. Governance provides the structure through which corporations set and pursue their objectives, while reflecting the context of the social, regulatory and market environment. Governance is a mechanism for monitoring the actions, policies and decisions of corporations. Governance involves the alignment of interests among the stakeholders. CG is an umbrella term. In its narrower sense, it describes the formal system of accountability of corporate directors to the owners of companies. In its broader sense, the concept includes the entire network of formal and informal relationships involving the corporate sector and the consequences of these relationships on society in general. The center objective of the paper is to create linkages between firm performance and governance practice in the listed SOEs in India. The present paper makes an attempt to compare the various CG variables of the listed SOEs for a period of five years ie 2012-13 to 2016-17. A detailed analysis of the 42 listed State Owned Enterprises (SOEs) in terms of board size, board meetings, board committees, board composition, independent directors, firm age, gender diversity has been compared. Finally conclusions are drawn from empirical analysis.