This book provides an introduction to corporate governance - the control and direction of companies by boards, owners, company law and other mechanisms. The book deals with the mechanisms of governance and how they are combined in different governance systems around the world. Part I is a non-technical overview of governance mechanisms and country models. Part II is an in-depth discussion of some particularly important governance mechanisms: ownership, boards, business ethics and corporate governance codes. Part III reviews international corporate governance systems: the market based US and UK systems, bank governance in Germany, cross ownership in Japan, and family business in East Asia. It is recommended that boards do regular corporate reviews to ensure value creation.