International Research Journal of Education and Technology

This study investigates the relationship between corporate governance practices and firm performance among listed non-financial companies in India over the period 2010–2023. Employing an unbalanced panel dataset of 50 firms, the study examines the individual and combined influence of three key governance mechanisms—women directors, CEO leadership structure, and CFO efficiency—on firm performance measured by Return on Assets (ROA), Return on Equity (ROE), and Tobin's Q. Grounded in Agency Theory, Resource Dependence Theory, and Upper Echelons Theory, the research utilises Pooled Ordinary Least Squares (OLS), Fixed Effects Model (FEM), Random Effects Model (REM), and System Generalised Method of Moments (GMM) to ensure econometric rigour. The Fixed Effects Model results reveal that women directors exert a positive and statistically significant impact on performance (β = 0.18, p = 0.02), while CEO duality demonstrates a significant negative effect (β = −0.25, p = 0.01). CFO efficiency emerges as the strongest determinant of firm performance (β = 0.35, p < 0.01). GMM robustness checks confirm the consistency of these findings after addressing endogeneity concerns. Collectively, all five hypotheses are supported at conventional significance levels. The findings underscore that governance effectiveness is contingent not merely on structural compliance but on the meaningful participation of diverse leadership. The study contributes to emerging-market governance literature and offers actionable implications for regulators, boards, and investors.

Keywords: Corporate governance; board diversity; CEO duality; CFO efficiency; firm performance; India