The SSPF RI policy is fully set and owned by the Board, with specific roles for certain Board members (ESG focal points) e.g. with regard to engagement. The Board is advised by the SSPF Investment Committee (IC) which in turn receives advice from the TSU (SPN) and the fiduciary asset manager of SSPF (SAMCo). Within SAMCo, final responsibility for RI oversight/accountability and implementation lies with the MD/CIO, while the - daily - operational responsibility lies with the Head of ESG. The Head of ESG collaborates with 10 ESG focal points from the various asset management teams and functional support departments in SAMCo. These ESG focal points work together with the relevant PMs in their teams. PMs have access to MSCI ESG data & research to facilitate the implementation of the RI policy in their portfolios.
The IC has four regular meetings each year where ESG is a standing item on the agenda (incl. asset class specific monitoring).
Voting & engagement activities are outsourced to Hermes EOS. The Board of Trustees of SSPF, SPN, SAMCo and Hermes EOS evaluate the impact of the monitoring, voting and engagement programmes on an ongoing basis. Hermes EOS provides quarterly reports to SSPF on the voting and engagement activities for SSPF's holdings. Hermes EOS prepares annually a detailed evaluation of it engagement work on SSPF's behalf, which is presented to and reviewed by the investment committee and Board in their Q2 meeting.