| Name | Annalisa Tonetto |
| At SKEMA since… | September 2024 |
| Title | Assistant Professor of Finance |
| Specialisation | Empirical Corporate Governance |
| SKEMA Research Centre | Finance & Accounting Insights on Risk and Regulation |
Annalisa Tonetto is an Assistant Professor of Finance at SKEMA Business School. She is a researcher at the Finance & Accounting Insights on Risk and Regulation SKEMA Centre. Her research focuses on board of directors, biodiversity, natural capital, institutional ownership, and network analyses. She is currently investigating overboarded (or busy) directors, documenting differences by gender in their effects on environmental and social ratings of firms.
Could you tell us more about your field of research, particularly board of directors?
My research in empirical corporate governance takes an interdisciplinary approach as it focuses on board of directors and sustainability. Research on board of directors typically examines critical challenges as board effectiveness, principal-agent problems, stakeholder representation, and compensation structures. My work addresses questions on director busyness and diversity impacts, investigating how overboarded (or busy) directors influence environmental and social outcomes of firms. My research also extends to the intersection of finance and sustainability through collaboration with the University of Cambridge, where we examine how financial decisions impact biodiversity. Currently, my focus is two-fold: examining how director characteristics impact corporate governance outcomes, and developing frameworks to integrate ecological metrics into financial valuation models to better assess biodiversity-related risks.
What results surprised you the most?
My findings in the “Overboarded” paper revealed unexpected gender differences in busy directors’ impact on environmental and social performance. Contrary to conventional expectations, I discovered that overcommitted female directors are associated with negative environmental and social ratings. This surprising result appears linked to tokenism practices of firms, and a narrower business and financial expertise of these busy female directors. I provide evidence that the California’s quota introduction is a plausible reason for the increase in overboarded female directors in recent years. My research suggests that complementing board diversity policies with guidelines on directorship limits could further enhance the effectiveness of these important initiatives and help realise their full intended benefits.
What are the foreseen outcomes?
My research aims to deliver two significant long-term impacts. First, by examining the complex interactions between board diversity initiatives and director workload, my work contributes important empirical findings to ongoing conversations about effective corporate governance. These insights could inform the development of complementary policies that maximise the benefits of diverse leadership. Second, my interdisciplinary work on biodiversity and finance aims to transform how we evaluate corporate environmental impact. While carbon emissions have dominated sustainability discussions, my research highlights the critical importance of biodiversity preservation. By developing frameworks that incorporate ecological metrics into financial models, I hope to catalyse a broader shift in how businesses, investors, and regulators assess corporate environmental responsibility—moving beyond carbon-centric approaches to encompass comprehensive ecosystem impacts.