BENCHMARKING CORPORATE GOVERNANCE - THE IMPACT OF THE CADBURY CODE

The Cadbury Code is a major initiative to improve corporate governance in the U.K. Its recommendations are highly specific and measurable an d allow both companies and stakeholders to benchmark best practice. Th is article discusses six key elements of the Cadbury Code, examines th e arguments underlying their proposal, and finally analyses how far th e top 100 U.K. companies are conforming to them. The research shows th at 73 per cent of companies are conforming to at least four of the six criteria, which indicates a high level of support for the practices h ighlighted by Cadbury. Some major criticisms of the Cadbury Code are t aken from the literature and examined in detail.