Informal Board Hierarchy and High-Quality Corporate Development: Evidence from China

Abstract

Promoting and realizing high-quality economic development is a major development strategy in China, but realizing high-quality macroeconomic development must be implemented at the micro-enterprise level. This paper takes Shanghai and Shenzhen A-share listed companies from 2010 to 2020 as a sample. By collecting data from CSMAR (China Stock Market & Accounting Research Database), CSMAR (China Stock Market & Accounting Research Database), and CNRDS (Chinese Research Data Services) and using a fixed-effects model, this paper investigates the impact of informal board level on the high-quality development of enterprises. The results of the study show that the informal board hierarchy contributes to the high-quality development of firms and is stronger in non-SOEs and firms with lower quality of internal control; the mechanism study shows that the informal hierarchy can contribute to the high-quality development of firms by reducing agency costs and improving business performance. In addition, higher levels of environmental uncertainty and board interaction can weaken the role of the informal hierarchy in promoting high-quality corporate development. Based on the perspective of the informal system, this paper innovatively explores how the informal level of the board of directors can overcome the shortcomings and risks of the “people” in the formal system. It is of practical significance to optimize the corporate governance structure and improve the corporate governance system and promote the high-quality development of enterprises.