PotashCorp recently received top marks for its corporate governance practices, placing first among more than 180 companies listed on the S&P/TSX index in the Globe and Mail’s annual Board Games rankings.

Board Games assesses the governance practices of each company across four categories: board composition, compensation, shareholder rights, and disclosure. PotashCorp scored a perfect 12 of 12 in the last category, which considered how fulsomely the company disclosed information. In online commentary accompanying the detailed ranking, the Globe and Mail noted that PotashCorp exceeded disclosure requirements, particularly regarding executive compensation.

PotashCorp scored well in the other three categories, as well, and accumulated an overall score of 95 points out of 100.

In the board composition category, companies were assigned points on a number factors, ranging from the percentage of independent board members to the number of women serving. The compensation category considered whether the company had established performance measure to guide compensation practices and the level of share ownership among directors and the CEO. The shareholder rights category assigned marks on a variety of issues, including the existence of dual-class shares, the degree of any share dilution, and director-election practices.

The Globe and Mail has run Board Games since 2002. However, the results from year-to-year are not directly comparable since the scoring system is adjusted annually to reflect new and changing best practices.

The full results can be accessed at www.globeandmail.com.