Worldwide Sustainability

During the quarter there were 126 resolutions from 10 companies to vote on.  On behalf of clients, we voted against 7 resolutions.

We voted against the appointment of the auditor at Nordson and Roche as they have each been in place for over 10 years. We believe rotating an auditor on a relatively frequent basis (e.g. every 5-10 years) helps to ensure a fresh pair of eyes are examining the accounts and follows best practice. We also voted against excessive executive renumeration at Roche. (seven resolutions)

During the quarter there were 42 resolutions from five companies to vote on. On behalf of clients, we didn't vote against any resolutions.

During the quarter there were 79 resolutions from eight companies to vote on.  On behalf of clients, we voted against two resolutions.

We voted against the appointment of the auditor at Advanced Drainage Systems and Vitasoy as they have been in place for over 10 years and the company has given no information on intended rotation. We believe rotating an auditor on a relatively frequent basis (e.g. every 5-10 years) helps to ensure a fresh pair of eyes are examining the accounts, and follows best practice. (two resolutions).

During the quarter there were 449 resolutions from 32 companies to vote on.  On behalf of clients, we voted against 30 and abstained one resolution.

We voted against the appointment of the auditor at A.O. Smith, Arista Networks, Beiersdorf, bioMérieux, Cognex, Constellation Software, Edwards Lifesciences, Elisa, Fortinet, Markel, Synopsys, Texas Instruments, Veeva Systems, Watsco and Zebra Technologies as they have been in place for over 10 years and the companies have given no information on intended rotation. We believe rotating an auditor on a relatively frequent basis (e.g. every 5-10 years) helps to ensure a fresh pair of eyes are examining the accounts, and follows best practice. (16 resolutions)

We voted against Edwards Lifesciences’ request to remove personal liability from certain senior officers. We believe such an amendment is unnecessary and do not think the company’s reasoning holds merit. (one resolution)

We voted against Fortinet’s request to remove personal liability from certain senior officers. We believe such an amendment is unnecessary and do not think the company’s reasoning holds merit. (one resolution)

We voted against Natura’s remuneration policy as we do not believe it is particularly long-term and the absolute pay amounts have increased significantly, especially in the context of recent poor performance. We voted against the establishment of a supervisory council as at the time of voting the company had not disclosed the candidates that would be up for election. We also voted against the election of a candidate, appointed by minority shareholders, to the supervisory council in alignment with our vote against the establishment of the supervisory council and we do not believe the candidate is truly independent. (four resolutions) 

We voted against Synopsys’ executive remuneration and amendments to their Employee Equity Incentive plan as we believe it is subject to adjustments to facilitate payments to management. (two resolutions) 

We voted against Texas Instruments’ executive remuneration, as we believe the absolute pay-outs for the CEO are high compared to other executive directors and the median employee. We also disagree with the vast majority of remuneration being discretionary and believe it is in shareholder interests for management to be measured against a few key metrics that hold them to account over the long term. (one resolution) 

We voted against WEG’s request to recast votes for the amended supervisory council slate, as we preferred to vote in favour of the female candidate nominated by minority shareholders and who has been on the fiscal council for two years. We abstained from voting on the election of the supervisory council as we preferred to support the minority candidate. (one resolution against, one resolution abstained)

We voted against Zebra Technologies’ executive compensation as we believe there is a large disparity between the CEO’s pay and the other executives. (one resolution)

We voted against a shareholder proposal requesting A.O. Smith report on racism in company culture. We believe the company is committed to diversity and inclusion as reflected in its Board which is 50% female and/or from underrepresented racial/ethnic groups. The company began tracking racial diversity in leadership roles in 2021, has enhanced its inclusivity training for leaders and continues to promote and discuss the topic heavily. (one resolution) 

We voted against a shareholder proposal relating to Synopsys which would enable shareholders with a combined 10% share ownership the right to call a special shareholder meeting. (one resolution)

We voted against a shareholder proposal at Veeva Systems which requested amendments to bylaws. We believe the company is shareholder friendly, and the proposal would breach the Company’s Certification of Incorporation. (one resolution)

We supported a shareholder proposal relating to Edwards Lifesciences which requested that the company separate the roles of the Chair and CEO. (one resolution)  

We supported shareholder proposals relating to Texas Instruments which requested the company report on its process for customer due diligence, by outlining sanctions and export control compliance, risks associated with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, more information on the know-your-customer due diligence process, and an assessment of legal, regulatory and reputational risks to the company. We also supported a request for the company to adopt a 10% threshold for calling special meetings as currently the Board’s threshold is a shareholding of 25% which appears high. (two resolutions)