This study aims to understand the impact of organizational contingencies such as organizational culture, human resource policies and inter-organizational linkage on financial performance, using the mediating role of crisis management in energy companies in Iraq. To this end, structural equation modelling (SEM) was adopted to test the causal relationships between the study variables. An exploratory design (i.e., a questionnaire) was used to collect data from 379 workers in energy companies in Iraq. The results of this study indicate that organizational contingencies affect financial performance. Besides, crisis management provides complete mediation of the relationship between organizational contingencies and financial performance. From the practitioner's point of view, leaders and practitioners should encourage a creative culture and idea generation to give members enough power to act and focus on goals that support building sustainable organizational capacity. Implications for Central European audience: The findings of this study contribute to providing academics and practitioners with a deep insight into the antecedents of financial performance to develop practices and policies that increase performance.

In light of the growing concern of governments and society about aggressive tax behavior, which poses ethical questions and conflicts with their interests, this study is designed to investigate the relationship between board diversity and aggressive tax planning in commercial banks in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries. It also examined the moderating effect of digital transformation on the former relationship. The study adopted 814 observations from GCC countries’ banks from 2010 to 2020. Ordinary least squares (OLS) and generalized method of moments (GMM) were used to test the hypotheses. Normative (OLS) and dynamic (System-GMM) estimates indicate a consistent pattern whereby board diversity, specifically multiple memberships, gender diversity, and financial expertise, is linked to a significant decrease in the intensity of aggressive tax planning in GCC banks. These findings confirm that combining effective governance with digital transformation can constitute a dual strategy to enhance tax compliance, especially in emerging market environments experiencing rapid developments in digital infrastructure, such as the GCC countries.

The research examined the influence of board committee attributes, audit committee (AC) and risk management committee (RMC), and external audit quality (EAQ) on earnings management. It also investigated the moderating influence of EAQ. The research used a sample of 61 banks registered in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) nations (Qatar, the UAE, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and Oman) spanning the years 2010 to 2020. The findings indicated that certain attributes of ACs and RMCs significantly enhanced earnings quality. Moreover, the calibre of external audit serves as an ancillary mechanism to the function of board committees in enhancing the transparency and integrity of financial reporting. Hence, this study offers clear theoretical insights by establishing a comprehensive framework that combines internal and external corporate governance methods to improve earnings quality. This study also offers valuable insights for decision-makers and regulators in the GCC regarding the development of legislation and regulations for board committee formation and the enforcement of stricter standards for external auditing quality.