Background: The board of directors is a key player in corporate governance. Their role is to ensure that the corporations are run with the interest of the shareholders as the main focus. In the beginning of the 21st century, a survey was made about the confidence of the Swedish business community and in which criticism was directed to the board of directors. The boards were deemed inadequate in their function and were often solely composed by members with similar experiences and competence, therefore lacking in diversity. In order to improve the competence and work of the board of directors, the Swedish code of corporate governance was introduced and its recommendations comprehend the boards’ size and composition. The recommendations are based on “comply or explain” and are therefore not enforced. It is, thus, possible to question the extent to which the recommendations are adhered to and whether the code’s introduction has affected the composition of the boards of directors and, consequently, their competence. Aim: This master thesis aims to explain the board composition of Swedish company boards during the years 1999, 2008 and 2011 and to analyze how this composition differs between the years. By studying the factors that are the basis of the composition, we also intend to discuss if, there has been a change of competence on the company boards. Completion: This thesis is of qualitative nature and its main focus is based on an analytical model that has been composed out of laws, regulation and theories. The analytical model has been the starting point for the gathering of information as well as for the analysis of the information. The empirical material is based on a study of annual reports and reports on corporate governance in ten companies as well as interviews with three members of nomination committees. Results: The thesis identifies several competence factors whose relevance varies according to the regulations or theory you take into consideration. The nomination committee's views on competence covers most of these factors. The thesis shows that the information available to shareholders does not completely capture the nomination committee’s view on competence. Furthermore, the thesis finds that the competencies of the board of directors are due to the unique company and its specific situation and an argumentation over whether a change incompetence has occurred can thus not be made without taking this into consideration.

För att kunna klättra i den politiska hierarkin är karriären på lokal nivå avgörande eftersom lokala erfarenheter anses vara positivt, och eftertraktat för att kunna lyckas. Sverige har ett partidominant valsystem, vilket innebär att valresultat i princip är en produkt av partiernas interna nomineringsprocess. Den senaste forskningen visar att valberedningar ger företräde åt kandidater som de själva anser att de kan likställas med. Varav denna studie har ämnat till att studera vilka formella och informella regler som kan påverka nomineringar till partiets vallistor. Vidare vad som eftertraktas av partiernas valberedningar i urvalet av kandidater och vilken betydelse kontaktkapital har för nomineringsprocessen. Undersökningen har grundat sig i en kvalitativ forskningsansats och det empiriska materialet har inhämtats genom halvstrukturerade intervjuer. Deltagarna i studien har varit tre valberedare och tre heltidspolitiker med minst ett förtroendeuppdrag. Resultatet har analyserats med utgångspunkt i teorin om kontaktkapital, homosocialitet och tidigare forskning. Studien har vidare mynnat ut i ett resultat som visar på att nomineringsprocessen inte är helt oberoende av valberedningens subjektiva premisser. Där det tydligt går att urskilja att det finns en rad egenskaper som är meriterande, och som kan hjälpa kandidater i nomineringsprocessen vid tilldelning av uppdrag och topplaceringar i vallistor. Det har visat sig vara viktigt att kandidaterna har ett nätverk, och ett förtroende för att lyckas och tilldelas uppdrag. / To be able to climb the political hierarchy, careers on a local level is crucial, because local experiences are considered positive and desired in order to succeed. Sweden has a party-dominant electoral system, which means that election results are a product of the parties' internal nomination process. The latest research shows that nomination committees give preference to candidates whom they themselves believe can be associated with. This study intends to investigate which formal and informal rules can affect nominations for the party's election lists. Furthermore, what is desired by the parties' nomination committees in the selection of candidates, and the importance of contact capital in the nomination process. The study has been based on a qualitative research approach and the empirical material has been obtained through semi-structured interviews. The participants in the study have been three electoral commissioners and three full-time politicians with at least one trust assignment. The results have been analyzed with the help of the theory of contact capital, homosociality and previous research. The study result shows that the nomination process is not completely self-sufficing of the nomination committee's subjective premises. Where it is clearly observable that there are a number of qualities that are meritorious, and that can assist candidates in the nomination process. It has proved to be important that candidates have a network, and a confidence to be able to succeed.

Titel: Valberedningen: dolda makthavare och kontrollägarens andra hand - En studie om kontrollägarens inflytande i svenska valberedningar och deras påverkan på styrelsens sammansättning Bakgrund: Tidigare forskning undersöker hur olika individuella egenskaper hos valberedningens ledamöter påverkar styrelsens sammansättning genom homosocial reproduktion. Utifrån att bolagens kontrollägare i flertalet fall finns representerad i valberedningen finns det möjligheter att även kontrollägarens närvaro har betydelse för vilka styrelsemedlemmar som nomineras. Vem kontrollägaren är och vilka intressen, mål och egenskaper denna ägare har kan vara en påverkande faktor för styrelsens sammansättning samtidigt som kontrollägarens formella maktposition skulle kunna påverkas av en eventuell informell makt som valberedningens övriga ledamöter besitter. Syfte: Studien syftar till att undersöka vilken effekt kontrollägarens representation i valberedningen får på den kvinnliga representationen i svenska börsbolags styrelser. Metod: En kvantitativ studie som tillämpar en deduktiv forskningsansats. Studiens urval baseras på noterade bolag på Stockholmsbörsens small, mid och large cap där information har inhämtats från databasen Holdings samt börsbolagens årsredovisningar och hemsidor. Slutsatser: Studien visar på tre slutsatser utifrån de empiriska resultaten. (1) Studien visar att kontrollägarens representation i valberedningen kan ge olika effekt på den kvinnliga representationen i styrelse utifrån sin ägaridentitet, vilket skulle kunna förklaras av ägarens tillgång till nätverk, institutionella känslighet eller villighet att premiera kvinnor. (2) Därmed är valberedningens sammansättning av betydelse för den kvinnliga representationen i styrelsen. (3) Institutionella ägare bör inte kategoriseras som en gemensam ägaridentitet i detta forskningsavseende då de empiriska resultaten visar på separata effekter på den kvinnliga representationen i styrelsens. / Title: Nomination committees: the hidden ruler and the control owners second hand - A study about the control owner's influence in Swedish nomination committees and their impact on the composition of the board Background: Previous research examines how different individual characteristics of the Nomination Committee's members affect the composition of the board through homosocial reproduction. Based on the fact that the company's control owners in most cases are represented in the nomination committee, there are possibilities that the control owner's presence also has a significant meaning for which board members that are nominated. Who the control owner is and what interests, goals and characteristics they have as an owner, can be an influencing factor for the composition of the board, while the control owner's formal position of power can be affected by an informal power on behalf of other members in the nomination committee. Purpose: The aim of this study is to examine the effect of the control owner's representation in the nomination committee on female representation on the boards of Swedish listed companies. Method: A quantitative study that applies a deductive research approach. The study's selection consists of listed companies on the Stockholm Stock Exchange's small, mid and large cap. Information have been collected from the database Holdings and the stock companies' annual reports and websites. Conclusions: The study shows three conclusions based on the empirical results. (1) The study shows that the control owner's representation in the nomination committee can have different effects on the female representation on the board based on their owner identity, which could be explained by the owner's access to networks, institutional sensitivity or willingness to nominate women. (2) Thus, the composition of the nomination committee is of importance for the female representation on the board. (3) Institutional owners should not be categorized under a common ownership identity in this research area, as the empirical results show separate effects on the female representation on the board.

Denna uppsats syfte till att undersöka hur informationsutgivning om valberedningen inom svensk bolagsstyrning påverkas av att bolaget är internationellt verksamt, bolagets storlek, spridd aktieägarstruktur samt styrelsens storlek. Trots att valberedningen spelar en central roll inom svensk bolagsstyrning är det ett ämne som är outforskat. Därav är det av intresse att undersöka vilken frivillig information om valberedningen finns tillgänglig i årsredovisningen, samt vilka centrala faktorer styr informationsutgivningen i årsredovisningen. Studiens teoretiska ramverk behandlar agentteorin, signalteorin och legitimitetsteorin. Studien genomfördes med en kvantitativ metod med ett urval på 279 bolag. Studiens resultat visade inga signifikanta samband mellan frivillig informationsutgivning om valberedningen och bolaget är internationellt verksamt, bolagets omsättning, spridd aktieägarstruktur samt styrelsens storlek. Gällande resultatet av kriterierna i kod 4.1 omnämndes kriteriet erfarenhet flest gånger, följt av kompetens, jämn könsfördelning och bakgrund. En slutsats av resultatet, är att erfarenhet är det kriteriet som omnämns mest eftersom det är en viktig faktor för att bolaget ska kunna styras i en gynnsam riktning och det är det kriteriet som bolaget vill främst förmedla till aktieägarna att de tar hänsyn till. En övergripande slutsatsen som kan dras är att information om valberedningen i årsredovisningen inte efterfrågas av aktieägarna eftersom de kan få tillgång till informationen på andra kommunikationskanaler. / This study aims to examine how the release of information about the nomination committee within Swedish corporate governance is affected by the fact that the company is international, the company's size, dispersed shareholder structure and the board size. Even though the nomination committee has a great importance in Swedish corporate governance, the topic is unreached. Because of this, it is of interest to examine what voluntary information about the nomination committee is available in the annual report, as well as what central factors govern the release of information in the annual report. This study is based on agency theory, signaling theory and legitimacy theory. The study is conducted with astatistical analysis on a sample of 279 companies. The results of this study showed no significant relationships between voluntary disclosure of information about the nomination committee and the companies that are international, the company's size, dispersed shareholder structure and the board size. Regarding the result of the criteria in code 4.1, the criterion experience was mentioned the most times, followed by competence, equal gender distribution and background. As a conclusion of the result, experience is the criterion that is mentioned the most because it is an important factor for the company to be steered in a favorable direction. It is also the criterion that the company primarily wants to communicate to the shareholders that they consider. An overall conclusion is that information about the nomination committee in the annual report is not requested by the shareholders because they can get access to that information on other communication channels.