Political Heterogeneity and Corporate Governance

Does golf tell us anything about how to optimize corporate governance?

The Wall Street Journal’s Golf Supplement may seem like an odd place to find corporate governance insights, but the most recent one had a very interesting story that sheds light on a central aspect of corporate governance; namely, team production.

In Want to Improve Your Golf Game? Play With a Political Ally, Lisa Ward reported that:

Professional golfers tend to perform better when they play with partners whose political leanings are similar to theirs.

So suggests a new study, the results of which could have implications for workplaces off the links, as well, according to the researchers. …

The study found that pro golfers tended to perform better when they played with another golfer whose political party affiliation was the same as theirs. Specifically, the researchers found that professional golfers had 0.2 fewer strokes a round when playing in politically homogeneous groups compared with politically heterogeneous groups.

…

The researchers believe their findings could apply to other workplace settings where people are engaged in tasks that require a lot of concentration. Although academic research shows that political diversity can be helpful when it comes to group collaboration and problem solving, another published paper by the researchers found that startup companies with politically diverse founding teams are more likely to shut down than startups with more politically homogeneous teams.

Much modern work is conducted by teams of employees working collaboratively to varying degrees. At the top of the corporate hierarchy is a team that needs to work collaboratively; i.e., the board of directors.

So. Does golf tell us anything about whether homogenous or heterogenous groups make between work teams or boards?