Board members' educational backgrounds and branding success in Taiwanese firms

Initiation and support from boardrooms are factors that are important to a Taiwanese firm's ability to change its strategic orientation from manufacturing to branding. We examine whether board members' educational backgrounds contribute to firms' branding success. We find that firms are more likely to be successful in brand development when their board members have been educated at top-ranked universities, foreign universities, and top MBA programs. The results are more robust when branding is successful at a global rather than a domestic level. Our argument is further supported by the finding that the educational background of board members is more relevant for branding success in industries with more mature branding practices.