Do boards of directors really matter in the cooperation behavior of firms? An exploratory analysis in Spain

Abstract

This paper explores the relationship between one of the major aspects of the internal mechanism of corporate governance, i.e., the board of directors, and the corporate strategy of cooperation. The study was designed to investigate whether certain board of director characteristics have an influence on the propensity to cooperate in Spanish listed non-financial firms. Our findings reveal that the propensity to cooperate in Spanish firms is driven more by a tight “management effect” whereby the highest probability of occurrence is related to firms with duality on their boards and a lower proportion of nominee directors representing controlling shareholders. This paper adds evidence to the corporate governance-corporate strategy (alliance propensity) discussion in a continental country such as Spain.