The Impact of the Characteristics of Russian Companies` Boards of Directors on Financial Performance

This study was devoted to determining the structure of boards of directors, namely, determining their characteristics that have an impact on the financial results of the company, reflected by Tobin's ratio. The study was conducted according to the data of 90 largest Russian companies for the period 2009 - 2017. As a result of evaluating the linear regression model, it was found that the financial results are positively influenced by the presence of women on the board, the presence of candidates' / doctoral / MBA degrees, and the presence of state experience. This suggests that education, as well as work experience in government agencies, allow the company to access unique resources and relationships of directors, and the presence of women helps to make more effective decisions. It was also revealed that the average number of boards in which directors sit has a negative impact. Despite the broad horizons of directors, their attention from one company is scattered, which leads to negative consequences for the company.