Does the presence of private equity professionals on the boards of big public firms serve any constructive purpose? Researcher Ugur Celikyurt found that among the companies sampled, at least a third had a PE director on board, and that their presence meant decreased spend on R&D, capex and investment in general in future. On the bright side, the firms were extremely selective with prospective M&As, especially side-stepping risky ones. Benefiting from the experience brought in by the PE directors, the boards were also able to create value for the firms.