CODES of CORPORATE GOVERNANCE of LATIN AMERICAN COUNTRIES: ANALYSIS of UN PRACTICES

Abstract

Purpose: For the stability of the organizational environment, corporate governance has become an indispensable condition. By adopting corporate governance codes, companies seek to compete differently in the market, valuing transparency as a guiding principle of relationships established in the various business segments. This article aims to compare the characteristics of corporate governance codes adopted by Latin American countries, including Brazil, Mexico, Argentina, Colombia, Chile, and Peru, through the set of practices recommended by the UN. Originality/value: The article studies the adoption of corporate governance codes adopted by Latin American countries, including Brazil, Mexico, Argentina, Colombia, Chile, and Peru. Design/methodology/approach: This is a qualitative and quantitative descriptive study. The data were analyzed in-depth using content analysis techniques and complemented by hierarchical cluster analysis, with the Ward method, using the Jaccard and the Russell and Rao methods. Findings: It was found that the corporate governance codes issued by Brazil, Colombia and Argentina converge with the UN guide. While the corporate governance code issued by Peru partially converges. The observed convergence suggests a concern with the demands of international investors. Finally, it was found that the corporate governance codes issued by Chile and Mexico have low convergence with the UN guide. This represents the lowest level of convergence between the countries investigated, indicating a greater concern with the local context than with international standards.