We believe that good governance drivers better business practices and ultimately leads to increased shareholder returns. We value transparency and accountability. This belief is deeply integrated into our investment approach and we regularly discuss various aspects of governance with management as part of our normal course approach to long-term engaged ownership. This is further reinforced in our proxy voting policy, which lays out our approach to issues such as Board structure, independent committees and executive compensation. In the 12 months ending June 30, 2016, while we agreed in full with management on 19% of proxy meetings, we had at least one point of distinction on the other 81%.
The list below is a sample of some of our focused and higher-impact historical engagements. While not exhaustive, we believe this to be a representative sample of our tireless commitment to doing what is right for shareholders. As we take stock in 2017, engagements are going to be as relevant as ever, although the issues that we focus on will continue to evolve.
- 21 focused engagements between 2004-2016
- 6 different countries
- More than 8 different industries
- 8 aimed at holding management and the Board accountable
- 8 aimed at attaining fair treatment for all shareholders
- 7 regarding contested M&A
- 4 regarding compensation
We employed a variety of engagement strategies including management engagement, board engagement and/or nominations, proxy/shareholder engagement and regulatory/legal filings. We consider ten of the engagements to be successful, eight were partially successful/ongoing, and three were unsuccessful.
In addition, in 2016, we engaged with 6 portfolio companies to encourage them to disclose on climate change via the CDP Climate Change Questionnaire: three did not respond, two said they would review, and one expected to complete the survey. We have renewed these efforts on a collaborative basis in 2017.