Abstract
As the digital transformation and the adoption of Generative AI accelerate, corporate boards face growing expectations to integrate technological expertise into their governance structures. This article examines the extent to which Dutch listed companies have incorporated digital expertise at the board level, combining a comparative legal analysis with an empirical study of biographies of 255 board members from 18 large Dutch listed companies in 2022 and 2025. While the Dutch Corporate Governance Code acknowledges the importance of technological awareness, it does not mandate digital expertise among directors. The empirical analysis, using natural language processing techniques, shows that while some companies have strengthened their technological governance by appointing tech-savvy directors and introducing technology committees, other firms have been less forthcoming. More specifically, four out of 18 boards lack any identifiable digital expertise, which can be considered notable given the increasing reliance on digital systems.
This study applies two text analytics methods (topic modeling (Latent Dirichlet Allocation) and a dictionary-based approach) to assess digital expertise in board biographies. The findings demonstrate that text analytics can uncover patterns in how digital expertise is signaled, adding objectivity and scalability to an area that has often relied on self-reported expertise and qualitative assessments. These methods can be extended to larger datasets and other corporate texts, offering a structured approach to evaluating boardroom competencies. Given the rapid pace of technological developments and Generative AI, these findings highlight the rationale for Dutch corporate governance to consider a more structured approach to ensuring boards are equipped with the expertise required to navigate digital transformation.