Introducing a ‘one size fits all’ corporate governance framework could cause boardroom upheaval with no guarantee of improvement, according to Korn/Ferry International.

The senior executive search and leadership consulting firm, which has been advising company boards for 40 years, highlights potential issues in its response to the European Commission’s public consultation on corporate governance.

Korn/Ferry says that corporate governance systems across the EU are varied and that at a time when individual member states are undergoing significant change to respond to governance issues of today, the introduction of a single EU code would cause unwarranted disruption with no guarantee of any gain.

The company believes that an EU limit on the number of mandates a non-executive or supervisory director may hold could cause significant upheaval as directors adjusted their portfolios to comply with the ruling.

It could push business leaders towards private equity board positions, reducing the amount of talent quoted company boards could draw upon, and potentially lead to upward pressure on boardroom compensation.

Richard Emerton, head of Korn/Ferry’s board & CEO services practice, EMEA, says: “In the UK, for example, since July 2006, the percentage of FTSE 100 NEDs with more than three quoted board roles has reduced from 25% to 20%, those with more than four from 13% to 8% and the number of NEDs with more than five positions has reduced from 5% to 2%.”