2.3.3.3 Participants and company characteristics

Of the 54 participants in the case study, 49 were male and 5 were female (Appendix I, Figure 1). The majority of the participants were aged 50 years or older (Appendix I, Figure 2). They had a wide range of professional experience in terms of company type and industry (Appendix I, Figures 3 and 4). Appendix I, Figure 4 shows their experience in listed and complex organisations. It must be noted that all of the non-executives except for one were previously executive directors. All of the participants had cross-border experience. Regarding their individual experience with liability, 18.5%of the 54 participants reported having been subject to liability litigation, including a closed suit, one that was dropped, settled, and/or paid out. Of the 54 participants in the study, 11.1% reported that they instigated a directors’ liability suit or threatened to do so against former directors (Appendix I, Figure 5).

The participants represented 83 listed companies relevant to this study and held 125 positions within these companies.1 This means that the participants occupied more than one position in the companies investigated. In terms of professional designation, within the group of 83 companies, 11% of the participants held a CEO position, 8% a CFO position, and 29% held the position of board chair (Appendix I, Figure 6). The focus of the study was on the larger (listed) companies. The gross revenue of the companies under study ranged from €49 M to €51,300 M. The majority of the companies under study had gross revenue of between €500 M and €1,000 M (Appendix I, Figure 7).2