Achieving Corporate Governance and Corporate Social Responsibility in an Emerging Market through Gender Diversity on Boards in India

This chapter presents an investigation of the experiences of women on boards in India, which is an emerging market. It is believed that emerging markets have yet to develop appropriate levels of corporate governance and corporate social responsibility (CSR) and therefore it is useful to investigate the attempts to incorporate these measures into corporations. We are then able to increase our knowledge of initial responses by corporations to calls for implementation of corporate governance and CSR. Additionally, we can gain insights into the experiences of women on corporate boards in an emerging market. The research reveals that women on boards encounter barriers that restrict their ability to fully contribute to the board. A lack of access to networks and support, stereotyped perceptions of leadership abilities, and lack of inclusion in all board work serve to silence women's voices. Corporations have a social responsibility to ensure that they secure the best talent available, male or female, to improve performance economically as well as socially. It is recommended that women should actively seek out and cultivate supporters. Women will need to adopt more self-assured behavior and be more directive and task-oriented in order to promote their abilities to contribute to the performance of the corporation.