Governance Aches and Pains: Is Bad Governance Chronic?

nstitutional investors pay considerable attention to the quality of a company’s governance. Unfortunately, it is difficult for outside observers to reliably gauge governance quality. Oftentimes, poor governance manifests itself only after decisions have been made and their outcomes known. We examine four companies that have had experienced chronic governance-related problems in the past, including Massey Energy, Nabors Industries, Yahoo!, and Chesapeake Energy. The Stanford Closer Look series is a collection of short case studies through which we explore topics, issues, and controversies in corporate governance and executive leadership. In each study, we take a targeted look at a specific issue that is relevant to the current debate on governance and explain why it is so important.