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The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between intellectual capital (IC) and corporate governance (CG) in a university setting. In particular, the aim is to argue that the lack of good CG can lead to an inability to attract and retain IC.

The article tests the CG/IC relationship at the American University of Beirut (AUB) by surveying the perceptions of full‐time faculty members. The survey addresses, in particular, the factors that attract IC to AUB and their perception of several aspects of CG at the institution.

The results suggest that CG and IC are indeed related and that faculty members view CG as a major factor for IC attraction. Respondents also consider that existing IC enhances the institution's ability to attract more IC. However, the mixed perceptions of the governance structure in place at AUB, as revealed by faculty responses, weaken the support for a strong relation between CG and IC at the university. The results also unveil some areas to be improved in the way resources are run.

The response rate for the survey was limited. The findings may be more substantive and conclusive if the sample was larger. As the study was done for one organization only, more research is needed to further explore the relationship between CG and IC.

The paper is the first to provide empirical evidence on the influence of CG practices on attracting and retaining IC from a general as well as from an academic institution perspective.

This paper seeks to examine the potential for regulation to reduce information asymmetries between firm insiders and outside investors.

Extensive prior research has established that there are substantial effects of information asymmetry in seasoned equity offers (SEOs). The paper tests for a mitigating effect of regulation on such information asymmetries by examining differences in long‐run operating performance, changes in that performance, and announcement‐period stock returns between unregulated industrial firms and regulated utilities that issue seasoned equity. The authors also segment the samples by firm size, since smaller firms are likely to have greater asymmetries.

Consistent with regulated utility firms having lower levels of information asymmetry, they have superior changes in abnormal operating performance than industrial firms pre‐ to post‐issue and their announcement period returns are significantly less negative. These findings are most pronounced for the smallest firms, firms likely to have the greatest information asymmetries and where regulation could have its greatest effect.

The paper does not examine costs of regulation. Thus, future research could seek to measure the cost/benefit trade‐off of regulation in reducing information asymmetry. Also, future research could examine cross‐sectional differences between different industries and regulated utilities.

Regulation reduces information asymmetry. Thus, regulation or mandated disclosure may be appropriate in industries/markets where information asymmetry is severe.

This paper is the first to compare the operating performance of regulated and unregulated SEO firms.

The ascendancy of women to top management positions is a perennial problem plaguing organizations worldwide. The purpose of this paper is to present some insights relating to this pervasive phenomenon from a Middle Eastern context by exploring the constraints reported by Lebanese women managers throughout their careers.

Literature review and qualitative research methodology consisting of interviews with 62 Lebanese women managers in different fields of occupation.

The findings suggest that the constraints reported by Lebanese women managers are similar to those reported worldwide. The main differences revolve around the strongly felt salience of cultural values and expectations constraining women to traditional roles and a more accentuated sense of patriarchy.

The value added of this research is to present an insider view and fresh perspective into career constraints facing women from a non‐traditional context, namely Lebanon. In view of the Western‐centric nature of academic publication on the topic, there is a real need and added value in empirical research stemming from an Arab‐Middle Eastern context.

Prior research suggests that corporations in countries with a weak and illiquid stock market rely either on internal resources or on loans from the banking system, while family businesses, in their desire to maintain control, prefer debt to equity. Owing to the weak external monitoring role played by the financial markets in Lebanon, this paper aims to goes beyond the financial role played by Lebanese banks by investigating their role in monitoring corporate clients.

A survey was conducted which included 12 questions and focused on the role of banks in Lebanon in fostering proper practices of governance amongst their corporate clients. The completed surveys represent 24 banks, with more than 85 percent of the total deposits, 89 percent of the total loan portfolio, and spanning all bank groupings.

The paper finds that, in addition to their financing role, Lebanese banks are both active monitors of and resource providers to their corporate clients, which is consistent with Hillman and Dalziel.

The paper contributes to prior research on the role played by the banking system in supporting economic growth in developing countries, as well as the large number of reports and recommendations on corporate governance in the MENA region. The empirical findings indicate that developing‐country banks have a substitution role that allows them to act as channels for implementing good corporate governance practices. Specifically, the greater involvement of banks with their larger corporate clients may ensure better oversight of the risks encountered by banks in their clients' operating activities.

The purpose of this paper is to look at how recent corporate scandals have translated into heightened interest in understanding various facets of corporate governance, notably the effectiveness of boards of directors and the composition of boards with particular attention to the gender dimension. In this context, the current study gauges the perceptions of Lebanese women managers regarding corporate governance issues pertaining to board effectiveness, roles and responsibilities and the benefits of female representation on boards.

The approach takes the form of a literature review and survey type questionnaire deriving from the literature. The questionnaire was administered to a sample of 61 top and middle level women managers, drawn from the context of 12 different banks in the Lebanese context.

The findings suggest that Lebanese women managers consider current board performance as not being satisfactory, that women are important board member candidates and that the low representation of women on boards in Lebanon is related to glass ceiling type impediments. They also believed that women board representation can reflect positively on the status of women at work and that government intervention is needed to level the playing field for women in management and at the boardroom level.

The value added of this research is to gauge Lebanese women's perceptions regarding corporate governance issues and the gender dimension, which is of direct relevance/interest to them. Moreover, these expressed perceptions are compared with what is reported in the literature, suggesting overall congruence between the experiences/perceptions of women in various contexts.