Some background on why the finance chief gets special attention from the researchers is worth noting. In fact, the entire 38-page report could be of great interest to CFOs.

"In focusing on CFO board membership, we build on research recognizing that the role and importance of CFOs has grown relative to other corporate officers," the researchers say, citing some past work. "However, very few studies of corporate governance differentiate CFOs as board insiders from other corporate officers. Treating top management as a group implicitly assumes similarity within the group, but CFOs are differentiated from other officers on the basis of their specialized role and knowledge in the financial reporting function."

So, the paper says, "it is important to examine variation in the CFO's place in the corporate structure, and how that variation relates to the quality of the financial reporting function (the CFO's area of authority)."