Book excerpt: Establishing a corporate governance strategy that promotes the efficient use of organisational resources is instrumental in the economic growth of a country, as well as the successful management of firms. This book reviews existing literature and identifies board structural features as key variables of an effective corporate governance system, establishing a multi-theoretical model that links Board structural characteristics with firm performance. It then, using a comprehensive empirical study of 265 companies listed on the Karachi Stock exchange, tests this conceptual model. This research serves as a significant milestone, reflecting the socio-economic setting of emerging economies, and highlighting the need for the corporate sector in emerging markets to move away from a 'tick-box' culture. It argues that the sector needs to implement corporate governance as a tool to mitigate business risks; appoint and empower non-executive directors to achieve an effective monitoring of management; and establish their own ethical and governance principles, applicable to the Board of Directors. Based on an extensive data base, collected painstakingly over five years, this book offers new insights and conceptual framework for further research in this area. Given the breadth and width of the research, it is a useful source of future reference for students, researchers and policy makers.