Do professional ties enhance board seat prospects of independent directors with tainted reputations?

Abstract

This study shows how professional ties assist directors in gaining future board positions when their reputation is tainted by accounting fraud. We demonstrate that the influence of professional ties is more prominent for directors who are more heavily impacted by fraud. This effect is also stronger when directors share professional ties with key board members in the appointing firms. Additional tests show that appointments of these directors are associated with more favorable market reactions compared to appointments of other tainted directors. We also find that firms’ financial reporting quality improves after appointing professionally connected tainted directors.