Engagement
We take our responsibilities as long-term shareholders (equities) and debt investors (bonds) extremely seriously.
We take our responsibilities as long-term shareholders (equities) and debt investors (bonds) extremely seriously. Where we identify that a company’s management has not addressed ESG risks adequately, we look to engage with the company directly or with other shareholders to work collaboratively towards positive change.
We view engagement as an important process that can enhance the incorporation of ESG into our investment approach. While engagement can take many forms, we don’t view all forms of contact as engagement. Contacts that we consider to be engagement are those that improve public disclosure (information engagements) or encourage improvements in ESG performance or generate change in the real economy (change engagements).
Our engagement activity is focused on core themes that are important to our stakeholders, enabling us to have a greater impact, develop areas of understanding and be more effective with our resources. In each case, in deciding when, how and why to engage, we act when we believe we can make a difference to the attractiveness of our investments by impacting outcomes at an investment level or at a wider market level.
Our fund managers and analysts are involved in engagement as part of their investment process. All engagement is conducted by the investment management team, which facilitates the inclusion of the engagement and monitoring activities into the investment decision making process. We believe that it’s in the best interest of our clients for us to use our influence on companies to promote strong corporate governance and sustainability.
Our engagement policy and annual Stewardship & Engagement report can be found in our Policies & Reports section.
To view our Engagement records for 2022, visit here
For examples of our engagement, see the below.
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EPC and emissions reduction commitments with REF borrowers
Case study on EPC and emissions reduction commitments with REF borrowers.
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Walmart - Fixed Income and Equity collaborative engagement activity
Walmart is a strong investment grade issuer that has defensive properties because it operates in the consumer non-cyclical sector.
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Fixed Interest – Individual Engagement with BMW
We remain invested in the automotive sector across both fixed income and equities. Our scenario analysis and proprietary research has identified this sector as being at risk of negative credit migration and as having known environmental impacts.
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Russia invasion on Ukraine - a joint fixed income and equities engagement
In early 2022, Russia invaded Ukraine. The U.S. and EU responded with financial, energy and technology sanctions on Russia.
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An integral role: ESG in the property sector
In the first of a series of articles looking at the development of ESG in the property sector, we consider how and why the picture is changing.
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Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in Property
The property sector has long held a reputation for a lack of diversity. However, in recent years this has started to change.
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ESG in property: adding value through refurbishment and repurposing
ESG is playing a bigger role than ever in the property investment sector. Ben Wood explains how it is integral to the team’s value-add process through the property cycle.
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The role of governance in sustainable property investment
Joanna Turner examines how both internal and external governance processes are shaping sustainable property investment.
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Integrating stewardship and investment - Fixed income
Climate change
