Boards of directors' roles and size: what effects on exploitative and exploratory innovations Case of listed Tunisian firms

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effect of the size and the roles of the board of directors (BD) on two types of innovation namely exploitative and exploratory innovations. These relationships have been little explored in the literature, particularly in developing economies. Using a quantitative approach, an empirical study was conducted on a sample of 51 Tunisian listed companies. It revealed that exploratory innovation is promoted by BDs service role. The results also highlight that exploitative innovation is positively related to the BD's strategy role but negatively associated with BD's control role. The findings do not show a significant effect of BD's size on the two types of innovation. This research provides insights to companies looking to improve their corporate governance practices and develop a sustainable competitive advantage based on innovation.