Norway instituted a minimum legal percentage of women on corporate boards.
Most companies had to women-up as a response.
And the bigger the change they were forced to make, the worse their stock performance.
… Consistent with the idea that firms choose boards to maximize value. The quota led to younger and less experienced boards, increases in leverage and acquisitions, and deterioration in operating performance.
I’m all for getting more women into top management, but can we do it at a pace that doesn’t destroy value?
BTW: This is forthcoming in the Quarterly Journal of Economics, which isn’t exactly a bastion of right-wing neanderthals.
Via Division of Labour.
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