International Journal of Recent Technology and Engineering (IJRTE)
ISSN: 2277-3878, Volume-8 Issue-3S2, October 2019
605
Published By:
Blue Eyes Intelligence Engineering
& Sciences Publication
Retrieval Number: C11301083S219/2019©BEIESP
DOI:10.35940/ijrte.C1130.1083S219
Abstract: Purpose of study: Several studies are made on
innovation, marketing orientation, social media and decision
made in the black-box. However, countries such as England,
Singapore and quite recently Malaysia legislated company law for
a proper governance of the company and laws passed now make
directors are more accountable of their fiduciary functions toward
the company. Such law legislated is due to numerous court cases
tried on breach of fiduciary and there are circumstances where
corporation were liquidated. To date there is an inadequate study
on the fiduciary accountability of directors or the Board of
Directors (BOD) towards innovation and sustainable business
growth. Despite innovation and sustainable business growth,
directors are accountable for their actions such as approving
expenditure on innovation, which result in low profit. However,
there are studies on the “black box” in which decisions are made
and. The aforesaid study lacks in one particular area, that is,
fiduciary accountability of directors, which go beyond the
decision-making process and its implementation. Since Malaysia
Parliament passed the Companies Act 2016, which comes into
effect in 2017, fiduciary duty is included in the Act. This study will
look into the innovation and sustainable business growth and how
the fiduciary accountability of directors moots innovation
technologically, encouraging innovative knowledge through
social-media among the employees, product innovation to meet
customers’ needs and, of course, business sustainable growth.
Methodology: In order to have more reliability of the aforesaid a
comparative study is made between one of public listed companies
and SMEs.
Result: A final note, the present study on would trigger academic
vigor in future because new concept of “fiduciary accountability”
which is introduced in this literature.
Index Terms: Fiduciary Accountability, Innovation, Sustainable.
I. INTRODUCTION
In an era of the digital world, the fiduciary accountability
of directors cannot be denied their role in ensuring the
sustainable business growth. This, of course, could be
achieved through innovating or reinventing new products in
the market to capture the customers‟ choice. The dispute of
trade imbalance at the world stage among the developed
countries, US and China could possibly affect the developing
countries. Having in mind of such political and economic
issues, entrepreneurs or directors need to produce innovative
products by using latest technological machines and cutting
Revised Manuscript Received on October 15, 2019.
S. Lakshmi Gandhan, School of Management Universiti Sains Malaysia,
Pulau Piinang, Malaysia. gandhanpillai@gmail.com
Daisy Mui Hung Kee, School of Management Universiti Sains
Malaysia, Pulau Piinang, Malaysia. dasy@gmail.com.
the cost of production so that products sold at the market
either locally or globally would be priced competitively low
and with quality assurance. It is supported recently that new
products were innovated to cater for customers and products
sold internationally (Jacob & Peters, 2015). If one reads the
newspaper and Enron matter, one think strikes the mind is the
lack of accountability of directors discharging fiduciary
functions. Not surprisingly, corporation with good credential
would be go into liquidation because of inability to settle the
debts. When the court lifts the veil of the corporation, it is
found, to some extent, directors have breached the fiduciary
duties putting the corporation into financial crisis. Contrarily,
directors have driven the company to another competitive
level by innovating new products, branding and seeking new
markets.Since there is lack of academy contribution in this
particular subject any study on fiduciary accountability of
direcors, predictor, contributing to sustainable business
growth would trigger future study of the aforesaid
academically. Notwithstanding the fiduciary encompasses in
wide application in social, political and business, to date there
is no correct definition and their application. Seeking to
define fiduciary accountability is „one of unfinished task of
modern legal scholarship‟(Harding, 2013), and the „holy
grail‟ of fiduciary jurisprudence that continue (Waters, 1986)
to be a blot on our law‟ (Weinrib, 1975). The word
„fiduciary‟ is originated from the Latin so-called Fiduccia
which means trust or confidence. The fiduciary accountability
of directors is an area where not much is contributed
academically. Most studies encompass on the area of
entrepreneurial orientation, decision making of managers,
market orientation and innovation but the specific area of
fiduciary accountability is not explored. In the actual
business scenario, fiduciary accountability of a director is
predominately important in contributing to innovation which
is essential to the sustainable growth. Undoubtedly, decision
making is one of components in the fiduciary accountability
but fiduciary accountability has a wider legal and business
implications if it is breached. If fiduciary accountability is
expounded it will give arise to spectrum of responsibilities
such as the stakeholders, market orientation, branded
orientation, management expenditure and innovation.
Fiduciary accountability is more pronounced in the listed and
transnational corporations but study on how directors owe
fiduciary accountability in
SMEs is not explored.
The Fiduciary Accountability of Directors
Ensuring Sustainable Business Growth in Public
Listed Companies and SMES
S. Lakshmi Gandhan, Daisy Mui Hung Kee