Board's gender diversity and international entrepreneurship: intensity versus quality?

Purpose An increased globalisation pushes forward the study of international entrepreneurship that however has been mainly analysed at a macro-environmental and an individual level. The authors want instead identify the determinants of international entrepreneurship from a firm-level perspective, specifically in relation to the key decision-making entity - the board of directors. The authors focused on the overall composition of the board of directors in terms of gender diversity and how this affects multi-subject decision-making when it comes to international entrepreneurship. Design/methodology/approach Based on entrepreneurial decision-making and the neo-institutional theory, the authors analyse the relationship between gender diversity in boards of directors and firms' international entrepreneurship, assessing how state ownership and ownership concentration moderate this relationship. Using a sample made up of China's listed companies from 2009 to 2018, the authors empirically test the main effect and the moderating effects. Findings International entrepreneurship is less prevalent in firms with more female directors, but in terms of quality of the decisions, these boards perform better. State ownership and ownership concentration can strengthen and weaken the relationship between the presence of female directors and the intensity of international entrepreneurship, respectively. Originality/value Firstly, the authors draw attention to the implications of gender diversity in boards of directors, calling for further studies on communication and collaboration patterns within multi-subject decision-making. Secondly, the authors' conclusions enrich academic literature on female directors by exploring the roles they play in firms' decision-making when it comes to international entrepreneurship.