Governance
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Economy, 26 May, 2020
Growth in protectionism ‘threatens corporate governance’
Academics warn that protectionism is growing under economic conditions created by the pandemic—and could undermine progress on corporate governance.
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Corporate reporting, 22 May, 2020
FRC urges companies to provide ‘full disclosure’ of survival prospects
The UK financial watchdog warns that reporting should reflect the impact of Covid-19—under different scenarios—on liquidity, viability and solvency.
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Public opinion, 21 May, 2020
‘Chairman contagion’ highlighted as growing reputational risk
Negative fallout from one organisation can seep into another via "chairman contagion", according to a report on reputational risk.
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Strategy, 19 May, 2020
McKinsey diversity report highlights growing performance risk
Companies that score poorly on both gender and ethnic diversity are 27% more likely to underperform on profitability, according to the latest McKinsey report on diversity.
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Climate risk, 13 May, 2020
LGIM to vote against ExxonMobil chair over climate concerns
The asset manager has a policy of voting against combined CEO–chair roles, but also cites worries about Exxon's "lack of strategic ambition" on climate.
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Corporate governance, 12 May, 2020
MPs call for ban on state aid for firms using tax havens
UK politicians have urged the chancellor to exclude businesses using tax havens from state aid, with a moratorium on dividends and curbs on CEO pay.
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Remuneration, 7 May, 2020
Quarter of FTSE 100 companies cut executive pay
Covid-19 crisis sees renewed emphasis from investors on alignment between executive pay and wider workforce remuneration.
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Research, 4 May, 2020
Poor mental health ‘associated with greater CEO turnover’
A study in Sweden looked at the health records of 25,000 CEOs to explore the role of mental and physical well-being on tenure, governance and policies.
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Workforce reporting, 30 April, 2020
Companies ‘failing to demonstrate oversight of vulnerable workers’
Research reveals a lack of data on vulnerable workers in supply chains, despite investor demands for better reporting and oversight.
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Corporate governance, 27 April, 2020
Social factors ‘now key to good corporate governance’ says ICGN
The Covid-19 pandemic has highlighted social failures and "deep" inequality which must be addressed by business, warns the global governance body.
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Legislation, 24 April, 2020
Investors call for mandatory human rights due diligence
Some of world’s biggest asset managers, including Aviva, Federated Hermes and Robeco, have signed up to the Investor Alliance for Human Rights.
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Regulation, 22 April, 2020
‘Going concern’ regulation puts firms and auditors under the microscope
New standard ISA UK 570 requires auditors to challenge management’s assessment of going concern more robustly—and firms to be as transparent as possible amid current uncertainty.
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Stakeholder capitalism, 21 April, 2020
Government bail-outs indicate ‘shift in mindset’ towards societal purpose
Denmark is leading a trend to impose restrictions on bail-outs, favouring business models that focus on stakeholders rather than shareholders.
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Due diligence, 20 April, 2020
Businesses ‘must consider human rights’ amid pandemic response
Campaign groups have warned that due diligence on human rights should remain central to organisations' response to the Covid-19 pandemic.
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Corporate governance, 20 April, 2020
Will Covid-19 accelerate the shift towards stakeholder governance?
The current challenging context will reveal to companies which of their shareholders have a long-term view—and which do not.
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COMMENT: Leadership, 17 April, 2020
The role of the board in times of distress
If companies are to survive the coronavirus crisis, corporate boards need to exercise collaborative, proactive leadership.
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Remuneration, 16 April, 2020
Asset managers urge restraint on executive pay during pandemic
Schroders and Hermes EOS warn boards that top executives must "share the pain" of the economic downturn, with pay "aligned with the experience of the wider workforce".
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Shareholders, 14 April, 2020
Warnings over risk of investor activism as boards focus on survival
Stock price falls have put some companies in a vulnerable position, while boards distracted by Covid-19 may not be prepared for activist intervention.
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International, 14 April, 2020
Auditing global progress on the UN Sustainable Development Goals
Better assessment is needed to deliver the "decade of action" on the UN SDGs ahead of us. Supreme Audit Institutions aim to meet this global challenge.
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Strategy, 9 April, 2020
Investors ‘expect boards to take a long-term view’ amid crisis
Open letter from the Investment Association details how members will help to “keep corporate Britain working”, with guidance on executive pay, dividends and financial reporting.