MACROECONOMIC EFFECTS ON THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE CHARACTERISTICS OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS AND ESG PERFORMANCE

Purpose: To analyze the macroeconomic effects on the relationship between the Board of Directors characteristics and Environmental, Social, Governance (ESG) performance.Method/approach: A descriptive, documental research was carried out with a quantitative approach through Hierarchical Regression. The research sample corresponds to companies listed and located in the emerging countries of the Americas between 2018 and 2021. Secondary data on companies were extracted from Refinitiv Eikon (R), while macroeconomic data was from The World Bank.Main findings: Board Size and Corporate Governance are positively related to ESG, indicating that these variables help companies align their behavior, according to pressure from stakeholders, towards strengthening ESG practices. When considering the macroeconomic effects, in addition to inflation having a positive impact on the ESG, it was possible to demonstrate the moderation of this variable in the relationship between Board Size and Corporate Governance.Theoretical, practical/social contributions: The paper contributes by analyzing the macro context of trade and economic relations in countries that represent emerging markets and by bringing new insights into how macroeconomic variations can be decisive for the relationship between characteristics of the Board of Directors and the ESG performance.Originality/relevance: In countries with lower inflation, a larger board benefits ESG. On the other hand, in countries with higher inflation, a large board is detrimental to ESG. Furthermore, companies with a high Corporate Governance indicator have a higher ESG, and, on average, a lower level of inflation enhances this benefit.