The aim of this working paper is to explore the phenomenon of interlocking directorates in a context of process of shaping new business community and corporate elite power in Poland after 1989. For the last 20 years Polish economy has copied many economic mechanisms and institutions (both formal and informal) typical for Western countries – private banks, stock exchange market, investment funds, cartels, lobbying etc. As some studies present, specific “path of dependency” working in a field of corporate governance has also appeared – with spillover effects from direct investments local companies followed many Western solutions regarding companies’ management. This paper refers on one of possible, adopted corporate governance and elite mechanism – links between companies on a level of boards of directors. The paper presents partial outcomes of a research project that uses both network analysis and interviews with insiders (the work is still in progress). The paper focuses on two aspects of interlocking directorates in Poland – systemic one (existence of such interlocks in Polish economy), institutional/cultural (patterns of corporate formal and informal relations, process of shaping corporate elites and building business community coherence). The first part of paper presents the evidences of existence within the Polish economic system links between biggest corporations (from Polish 500 list) on a level of personal connections made by directors. The second part of analysis will relate to the problem of cultural and institutional links between interlocking directorates and process of business elites creation.
