We have a dedicated ESG team that works with our investment management and proxy voting teams, providing research on ESG topics within individual companies and sectors, developing analytics and reporting, and generally acting as an ESG resource for the investment teams. This team also is involved in engaging senior leaders within Fidelity and establishing a cross-asset class oversight and governance structure for the ESG program. ESG implementation strategy and progress is shared with the Fidelity-wide ESG Steering Committee formed in 2018.
Our portfolio managers and analysts incorporate ESG factors and research into the "mosaic" they use to evaluate investment opportunities. We currently use two of the industry's leading ESG research providers, both of which are integrated into our proprietary investment technology. Analysts and portfolio managers also have access to a wide array of ESG resources via data providers such as Bloomberg and ISS, as well as sell-side ESG research from leading brokerage houses.
These research sources provide extensive coverage of ESG issues: company-specific ratings and research, corporate engagement activity and thematic sector and industry ESG research. Dedicated ESG analysts from each of the research providers are available to our investment team for consultation on company-specific issues or industry research.
Our equity analysts may include assessments of any material ESG factors within their formal research notes about the investee company under consideration. Some ESG issues are industry-wide or global, while others are specific to the individual company. When posted to our global research database, that research note is generally available to all Fidelity investment professionals, subject to internal policies and procedures.
Additionally, Fidelity established a corporate governance and forensic accounting team in 2012 that is focused on identifying governance/accounting risks in companies. This team has developed a six-pillar framework to comprehensively analyze corporate governance risks and also supports bespoke research and analysis for the investment team. The team’s research is published through our proprietary research publishing system and the research is available to all investment professionals, subject to internal policies and procedures.
Fidelity votes in accordance with Proxy Voting Guidelines and the relevant board reviews and approves the Guidelines annually. Fidelity's Investment Proxy Research group carries out the voting of proxies in accordance with the Guidelines.