A Female Style in Corporate Leadership? Evidence from Quotas

This paper studies the impact of gender quotas for corporate board seats on corporate policy decisions. We examine the introduction of Norway's 2006 quota, comparing affected firms to other Scandinavian companies, public and private, that were unaffected by the rule. Based on differences-in-differences and triple-difference models, we find that firms affected by the quota undertook fewer workforce reductions than comparison firms, increasing relative labor costs and employment levels and reducing short-term profits. The effects are strongest among firms that had no female board members before the quota was introduced and present even for boards with older and more experienced members. The boards appear to be affecting corporate strategy in part by selecting like minded executives.