Abstract
The codification of the work of boards marked a major shift of direction in corporate governance. This chapter sets the process in historical context, examining both the market and political settings that pre-dated the Cadbury Code. It shows how those contexts subsequently developed as renewed crises emerged, even as the core tenets of the code persisted.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Notes
- 1.
This study uses ‘chair’ as its default label for the leader of the board of directors. In much of the time-period this study examines, chairs of listed companies were all men. The term ‘chairman/men’ is used when it is the title of the specific person involved and is of course used in direct quotations.
References
Bank of England. (2015, November). The failure of HBOS plc. UK Financial Conduct Authority and Prudential Regulatory Authority report. Retrieved November 19, 2015, from http://www.bankofengland.co.uk/pra/Documents/publications/reports/hbos.pdf.
Berle, A. A., Jr., & Means, G. C. (1932/1991). The modern corporation and private property (Rev. ed.). New Brunswick, NJ: Transaction Publishers.
Bostock, R. (1995). Company responses to Cadbury. Corporate Governance: An International Review, 3(2), 72–77. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8683.1995.tb00099.x.
Bruni, F., & Llewellyn, D. T. (Eds.). (2009). The failure of Northern Rock: A multi-dimensional case study (Vol. 2011). Vienna: SUERF—The European Money and Finance Forum.
Company Law Steering Group. (1999). Modern company law for a competitive economy: The strategic framework. Company Law Reform consultation document. Retrieved January 15, 2016, from http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20070603164510/http://www.dti.gov.uk/cld/comlawfw/framewrk.pdf.
Concannon, M., & Nordberg, D. (2018). Boards strategizing in liminal spaces: Process and practice, formal and informal. European Management Journal, 36(1), 71–82. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.emj.2017.03.008.
Crystal, G. S. (1992). In search of excess: The overcompensation of American executives. New York: W. W. Norton.
Doble, M. (1997). The impact of the Cadbury code on selection of directors and board composition in UK newly-quoted companies, 1990–1994. Corporate Governance: An International Review, 5(4), 214–233. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-8683.00063.
Dobrzynski, J. H. (1996, November 17). Seats on too many boards spell problems for investors. NYTimes.com. Retrieved January 7, 2019, from https://www.nytimes.com/1996/11/17/business/seats-on-too-many-boards-spell-problems-for-investors.html.
Fama, E. F., & Jensen, M. C. (1983a). Agency problems and residual claims. Journal of Law and Economics, 26(2), 327–349. https://doi.org/10.1086/467038.
Fama, E. F., & Jensen, M. C. (1983b). Separation of ownership and control. Journal of Law and Economics, 23(2), 301–325. https://doi.org/10.1086/467037.
Fisch, J. E. (1997). Taking boards seriously. Cardozo Law Review, 19(1–2), 265–290.
Franks, J. R., Mayer, C., & Rossi, S. (2005). Spending Less Time with the family: The decline of family ownership in the UK. In R. K. Morck (Ed.), A history of corporate governance around the world: Family business groups to professional managers (pp. 581–611). Chicago: University of Chicago Press for NBER.
FRC. (2003). Combined code on corporate governance. UK Financial Reporting Council. Retrieved June 20, 2006, from http://www.frc.org.uk/documents/pagemanager/frc/Web%20Optimised%20Combined%20Code%203rd%20proof.pdf.
FRC. (2010). The UK corporate governance code. UK Financial Reporting Council. Retrieved May 29, 2010, from http://www.frc.org.uk/documents/pagemanager/Corporate_Governance/UK%20Corp%20Gov%20Code%20June%202010.pdf.
FSA. (2011, December). The failure of the Royal Bank of Scotland plc. UK Financial Services Authority report. Retrieved November 19, 2015, from http://www.fsa.gov.uk/pubs/other/rbs.pdf.
Greenbury, R. (1995). Directors’ remuneration: Report of the study group. European Corporate Governance Institute. Retrieved October 27, 2008, from http://www.ecgi.org/codes/documents/greenbury.pdf.
Greenwood, R., Suddaby, R., & Hinings, C. R. (2002). Theorizing change: The role of professional associations in the transformation of institutionalized fields. Academy of Management Journal, 45(1), 58–80. https://doi.org/10.2307/3069285.
Hampel, R. (1998). Committee of corporate governance—Final report. Retrieved April 25, 2008, from http://www.ecgi.org/codes/documents/hampel.pdf.
Higgs, D. (2003). Review of the role and effectiveness of non-executive directors. Retrieved October 15, 2006, from http://www.ecgi.org/codes/documents/higgsreport.pdf.
Hillman, A. J., & Dalziel, T. (2003). Boards of directors and firm performance: Integrating agency and resource dependence perspectives. Academy of Management Review, 28(3), 383–396. https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.2003.10196729.
Jensen, M. C., & Meckling, W. H. (1976). Theory of the firm: Managerial behavior, agency costs and ownership structure. The Journal of Financial Economics, 3(4), 305–360. https://doi.org/10.1016/0304-405X(76)90026-X.
MacAvoy, P. (2003). ‘Where was the board?’ Share price collapse and the governance crisis of 2000–2002. In P. MacAvoy & I. Millstein (Eds.), The recurrent crisis in corporate governance (pp. 66–94). Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.
Nordberg, D., & McNulty, T. (2013). Creating better boards through codification: Possibilities and limitations in UK corporate governance, 1992–2010. Business History, 55(3), 348–374. https://doi.org/10.1080/00076791.2012.712964.
Perrow, C. (2002). Organizing America: Wealth, power, and the origins of corporate capitalism. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
Spira, L. F., & Slinn, J. (2013). The Cadbury committee: A history. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Sternberg, E. (2000). How the strategic framework for UK company law reform undermines corporate governance. Hume Papers on Public Policy, 8(1), 54–69.
Turnbull, N. (1999). Internal control: Guidance for directors on the combined code. Retrieved November 15, 2008, from http://www.ecgi.org/codes/documents/turnbul.pdf.
Walker, D. (2009, November 26). A review of corporate governance in UK banks and other financial industry entities: Final recommendations. HM Treasury Independent Reviews. Retrieved November 26, 2009, from http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/d/walker_review_consultation_160709.pdf.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2020 The Author(s)
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Nordberg, D. (2020). Codes and Their Contexts. In: The Cadbury Code and Recurrent Crisis. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-55222-0_3
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-55222-0_3
Published:
Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-030-55221-3
Online ISBN: 978-3-030-55222-0
eBook Packages: Business and ManagementBusiness and Management (R0)