Governance and Ownership: Theoretical Framework of Research

This article reviews practical and theoretical aspects of ownership research and corporate governance in a historical view. Whom and what is a business for? The answer once seemed clear, but no longer. Jyrki Veranen (1996) argues that the governing of the company should be based on a model that allows the owners to control and support the management. Martin Hilb (2006) argues that ownership has been replaced by investment, and a companyís assets are increasingly found in its people. Ownership history and knowledge of relevant contextual factors help to frame the írightî questions to ask in our research efforts. An historical summary of ownership research is given. The term ícorporate governanceî has come to mean many things; it involves various problems of asymmetric information and incomplete contracts that generate a need for public policy responses to mitigate market failures and ensuring that companies move towards ígoodî corporate governance. It seems that all research on corporate governance is actually research on ownership. Ownership research needs delicate and sensitive information. This author is further developing a typology of capital company owners in Estonia, using cluster analysis.