Purpose
To enable you to research some aspects of corporate governance.It is important for you to have time to think through how to structure and present arguments, and to review and discuss what the law is or should be in a particular area. Whilst discussion with others is encouraged, the final piece of work must be your own.
Word Limit
2,300-2,500 in total (assignments exceeding the word limit may not be marked and may be returned to the student for re-writing; assignments less than the required length will risk not covering the topic adequately and may result in a fail). Do not include synopsis, references or bibliography in the word count.
Note: All Federation University Australia rules relating to referencing, citation and acknowledgement must be complied with.
Required : Complete the tasks in Part A and Part B.
Part A
An issue that attracts debate in relation to corporate governance is whether there should be a requirement that boards have a majority of independent directors.
Consider the above statement, then identify and discuss both the arguments for and against the proposal that the majority of members of the board of Directors should a be independent.
Your discussion must include a response to the following:
- What does the term 'independent director' mean?
- Should specific board positions be held by independent directors (eg Chairman). If so, why? If not, why not?
- What is the primary role of a board of directors?
- Is the primary role of a board of directors' best met by having a majority of independent directors?
- Is there evidence of a positive correlation between an 'independent board' (ie a board consisting of a majority of independent directors) and corporate performance (ie, is there any evidence that performance is improved where the majority of the board is independent)?
Part B
- There are formal regulatory approaches to corporate governance and voluntary, self-regulation approaches. Give an example of each. Identify and briefly explain both a theory of corporate governance that supports a formal regulatory approach and a theory that supports a voluntary, self-regulation approach.