Purpose: The purpose of this study is to analyze the impact of human capital related to gender and nationality diversity in boards of directors on the innovation of university spin-offs (USOs) in their entrepreneurial ecosystem. Following the intellectual capital (IC) framework and the resource dependence theory, upper echelons theory and critical mass theory, it hypothesizes that the relationship between board diversity and USOs’ firm innovation is non-linear.Design/methodology/approach: To test the research hypotheses empirically, a sample of 827 Italian USOs over the period 2009–2018 was analyzed using zero-inflated Poisson regression modeling. A robustness test was also performed.Findings: Gender obstacles remain in USOs’ entrepreneurial ecosystem, with little involvement of women in boards, and the benefits of human capital for firm innovation emerge with increased female representation. Nevertheless, a few foreign-born directors embody valued IC in terms of human capital from an internationally linked entrepreneurial ecosystem, which decreases with more foreign-born directors due to communication costs and coordination problems.Research limitations/implications: The emerging non-linear relationships imply that gender- and nationality-diverse boards in USOs constitute critical human capital factors boosting the devolvement of entrepreneurial processes, in terms of firm innovation, in university entrepreneurial ecosystems.Originality/value: This study contributes significantly to the move from traditional corporate governance analysis through an IC framework, fostering an understanding of the role of human capital and its diversity determinants in spurring firm innovation among USOs considering the university entrepreneurial ecosystem.

This study aims to analyse whether firms adopting the institutional and organizational model of a benefit company (BC) increase the appointment of women to their board of directors (BoD) by applying the theoretical models of reputation management and resource dependence theory. A sample of 354 Italian firms adopting the BC model and a control group of 600 firms over the period of 2009–2018 were analysed. A fractional regression probit model was used to analyse the effect of the institutional form of the BC on the presence of women on BoDs. The findings, generally robust regarding different econometric specifications dealing with potential endogeneity, confirmed that a firm’s adoption of the BC model positively affects the likelihood of the firm increasing the presence of women on its BoD. This evidence justifies the actions of those stakeholders in firms that are actively involved in corporate social responsibility (CSR) processes, seeking increased reputation and legitimacy by increasing the number of female directors in the firm. The study contributes new insights into the relationship between CSR and the appointment of women on BoDs in the new and emerging business context of hybrid organizational models. Additionally, the study advances our knowledge about the heterogeneous and reversed associations between the institutional model of the BC and the choice of specific corporate governance mechanisms in the form of the appointment of women on BoDs to increase the reputation and legitimacy of firms.