Board Games: Antecedents of Australia's Interlocking Directorates, 1910-2018

Wright, CEF

Board Games: Antecedents of Australia's Interlocking Directorates, 1910-2018

Wright, CEF

Permalink

Publisher:: Business History Conference
Publication Type:: Journal Article
Citation:: Enterprise and Society: the international journal of business and history, 2023, 24, (2), pp. 589-616
Issue Date:: 2023-01-01

Closed Access

	Filename	Description	Size
	div-class-title-board-games-antecedents-of-australia-s-interlocking-directorates-1910-2018-div.pdf	Published version	634.69 kB	Adobe PDF	View/Open

Copyright Clearance Process

Recently Added
In Progress
Closed Access

This item is closed access and not available.

Full metadata record

Field	Value	Language
dc.contributor.author	Wright, CEF
dc.date.accessioned	2024-02-24T03:44:34Z
dc.date.available	2024-02-24T03:44:34Z
dc.date.issued	2023-01-01
dc.identifier.citation	Enterprise and Society: the international journal of business and history, 2023, 24, (2), pp. 589-616
dc.identifier.issn	1467-2227
dc.identifier.issn	1467-2235
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/10453/175864
dc.description.abstract	Interlocking directorates can encourage innovation, cooperation, and adherence to best practices or can contribute to collusion, corruption, and the stagnation of ideas. Research has identified the contingent nature of director networks, with outcomes dependent on the nature of the tie; the firms and individuals involved; and the institutional, sociopolitical, and cultural context. Distinguishing between helpful and harmful interlocks thus requires understanding the foundations on which they were built. This article is the first systematic, longitudinal analysis of the antecedents of interlocking directorates in Australia, complementing substantial international efforts to understand and compare director networks across the twentieth century. The network has been characterized by a relatively consistent long-run level of connection but substantial variation in the causes of interlocks. The director network in Australia has responded to the pragmatics of the board member occupation, with corporate governance regulations, the progress of the professions, banking and prudential practices, and the form of large organizations encouraging ties that were built on professional expertise and geographic proximity. These findings are important for policy makers, regulatory bodies, and scholars, highlighting the importance of understanding the contextual foundations of interlocks when assessing their potential for harm.
dc.language	English
dc.publisher	Business History Conference
dc.relation.ispartof	Enterprise and Society: the international journal of business and history
dc.relation.isbasedon	10.1017/eso.2021.59
dc.rights	info:eu-repo/semantics/closedAccess
dc.subject	1402 Applied Economics, 1503 Business and Management, 2202 History and Philosophy of Specific Fields
dc.subject.classification	History of Social Sciences
dc.subject.classification	3505 Human resources and industrial relations
dc.subject.classification	3801 Applied economics
dc.subject.classification	5002 History and philosophy of specific fields
dc.title	Board Games: Antecedents of Australia's Interlocking Directorates, 1910-2018
dc.type	Journal Article
utslib.citation.volume	24
utslib.for	1402 Applied Economics
utslib.for	1503 Business and Management
utslib.for	2202 History and Philosophy of Specific Fields
pubs.organisational-group	University of Technology Sydney
pubs.organisational-group	University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Business
pubs.organisational-group	University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Business/Management Discipline
utslib.copyright.status	closed_access	*
pubs.consider-herdc	false
dc.date.updated	2024-02-24T03:44:32Z
pubs.issue	2
pubs.publication-status	Published
pubs.volume	24
utslib.citation.issue	2

Abstract:

Interlocking directorates can encourage innovation, cooperation, and adherence to best practices or can contribute to collusion, corruption, and the stagnation of ideas. Research has identified the contingent nature of director networks, with outcomes dependent on the nature of the tie; the firms and individuals involved; and the institutional, sociopolitical, and cultural context. Distinguishing between helpful and harmful interlocks thus requires understanding the foundations on which they were built. This article is the first systematic, longitudinal analysis of the antecedents of interlocking directorates in Australia, complementing substantial international efforts to understand and compare director networks across the twentieth century. The network has been characterized by a relatively consistent long-run level of connection but substantial variation in the causes of interlocks. The director network in Australia has responded to the pragmatics of the board member occupation, with corporate governance regulations, the progress of the professions, banking and prudential practices, and the form of large organizations encouraging ties that were built on professional expertise and geographic proximity. These findings are important for policy makers, regulatory bodies, and scholars, highlighting the importance of understanding the contextual foundations of interlocks when assessing their potential for harm.

Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item:

http://hdl.handle.net/10453/175864