Relational Capital: Do board networks exist and are they valuable? (D3.2)

Do board members’ networks create value for companies? 

This report attempts to capture the term relational capital, defined as an enterprise’s network participation. Using network analysis tools on Norwegian register data, it is found that there indeed exists a network between enterprises, through boards forming interconnected nodes. The paper also finds that high network connectedness is positively related to R&D spending, where the correspondence is strongest among SMEs.

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