Public HTML RI reports - PRI reporting framework 2020

Type of engagement	Reason for interaction
Individual / Internal staff engagements	To influence corporate practice (or identify the need to influence it) on ESG issues To encourage improved/increased ESG disclosure To gain an understanding of ESG strategy and/or management We do not engage via internal staff
Collaborative engagements	To influence corporate practice (or identify the need to influence it) on ESG issues To encourage improved/increased ESG disclosure To gain an understanding of ESG strategy and/or management We do not engage via collaborative engagements
Service provider engagements	To influence corporate practice (or identify the need to influence it) on ESG issues To encourage improved/increased ESG disclosure To gain an understanding of ESG strategy and/or management We do not engage via service providers

02.4. Additional information. [Optional]

We have no general policy of engaging via collaborative engagements and we take it that Norsif/Swesif membership is not what's intended her. However, we do from time to time, as we have done recently, team up with other investors in order to bring about change or better disclosure on certain topics, the last such case involving a conflict of interest due to related party transactions. Some six cases of collaborative efforts have involved corporate governance.

We would like to add that due to our concentrated portfolios and the long-term nature of our holdings, we know the companies we invest in very well, communicating regularly with senior management, whether on a formal or an informal basis. This is not always logged, but it is a central part of our portfolio management, as we argue that knowing our portfolio companies well is a means of reducing risk beyond simple diversification. Dialogue is more common in our management of domestic securities, but we do encourage all portfolio managers to engage in dialogue with their respective portfolio companies.

LEA 03. Process for identifying and prioritising engagement activities

New selection options have been added to this indicator. Please review your prefilled responses carefully.

03.1. Indicate whether your organisation has a formal process for identifying and prioritising engagements.

Yes

Indicate the criteria used to identify and prioritise engagements for each type of engagement.

Type of engagement	Criteria used to identify/prioritise engagements
Individual / Internal staff engagements	Individual / Internal staff engagements Geography/market of the companies Materiality of the ESG factors Exposure (size of holdings) Responses to ESG impacts that have already occurred Responses to divestment pressure Consultation with clients/beneficiaries Consultation with other stakeholders (e.g. NGOs, trade unions, etc.) Follow-up from a voting decision Client request Breaches of international norms Other; (specify) We do not outline engagement criteria for our individual engagements
Collaborative engagements	Collaborative engagements Potential to enhance knowledge of ESG issues through other investors Ability to have greater impact on ESG issues Ability to add value to the collaboration Geography/market of the companies targeted by the collaboration Materiality of the ESG factors addressed by the collaboration Exposure (size of holdings) to companies targeted by the collaboration Responses to ESG impacts addressed by the collaboration that have already occurred Responses to divestment pressure Follow-up from a voting decision Alleviate the resource burden of engagement Consultation with clients/beneficiaries Consultation with other stakeholders (e.g. NGOs, trade unions, etc.) Other; (specify) We do not outline engagement criteria for our collaborative engagement providers

03.3. Additional information. [Optional]

LEA 04. Objectives for engagement activities

New selection options have been added to this indicator. Please review your prefilled responses carefully.

Indicate whether you define specific objectives for your organisation’s engagement activities.

Individual / Internal staff engagements

All engagement activities

Majority of engagement activities

Minority of engagement activities

We do not define specific objectives for engagement activities carried out by internal staff

Collaborative engagements

All engagement activities

Majority of engagement activities

Minority of engagement activities

We do not define specific objectives for engagement activities carried out through collaboration

04.2. Additional information. [Optional]

LEA 05. Process for identifying and prioritising collaborative engagement

Indicate whether you monitor and/or review engagement outcomes.

Individual / Internal staff engagements

Yes, in all cases

Yes, in a majority of cases

Yes, in a minority of cases

We do not monitor, or review engagement outcomes when the engagement is carried out by our internal staff.

Collaborative engagements

Yes, in all cases

Yes, in a majority of cases

Yes, in a minority of cases

We do not monitor, or review engagement outcomes when the engagement is carried out through collaboration.

Indicate whether you do any of the following to monitor and/or review the progress of engagement activities.

Individual / Internal staff engagements

Define timelines/milestones for your objectives

Track and/or monitor progress against defined objectives and/or KPIs

Track and/or monitor the progress of action taken when original objectives are not met

Revisit and, if necessary, revise objectives on a continuous basis

Other; specify

          Regular discussions with the CIO about individual companies. Objectives may be hard to define precisely, not to say
quantify.

Collaborative engagements

Define timelines/milestones for your objectives

Track and/or monitor progress against defined objectives and/or KPIs

Track and/or monitor the progress of action taken when original objectives are not met

Revisit and, if necessary, revise objectives on a continuous basis

Other; specify

          On a case-by-case basis. Given a smaller number of cases than with internal
engagements, we can tick off a majority of cases.

05.3. Additional information. [Optional]

Being an active asset manager, we expect the close contact and wide extent of informal communication with our limited number of companies to provide good insight into all relevant matters. Then again, given that this is very much informal communication, it is hard to itemize.

LEA 06. Role in engagement process

06.1. Indicate whether your organisation has an escalation strategy when engagements are unsuccessful.

Yes

06.3. Additional information. [Optional]

Please note, though, that we are not likely to settle for an unsuccessful outcome. The general idea is if you don't succeed, try again ... We don't, however, have a formal strategy in this regard.

LEA 07. Share insights from engagements with internal/external managers

07.1. Indicate whether insights gained from your organisation`s engagements are shared with investment decision-makers.

Type of engagement	Insights shared
Individual / Internal staff engagements	Yes, systematically Yes, occasionally No
Collaborative engagements	Yes, systematically Yes, occasionally No

07.2. Indicate the practices used to ensure that information and insights gained through engagements are shared with investment decision-makers.

Involving investment decision-makers when developing an engagement programme

Holding investment team meetings and/or presentations

Using IT platforms/systems that enable data sharing

Internal process that requires portfolio managers to re-balance holdings based on interaction and outcome levels

Other; specify

None

07.3. Indicate whether insights gained from your organisation’s engagements are shared with your clients/beneficiaries.

Type of engagement	Insights shared
Individual/Internal staff engagements	Yes, systematically Yes, occasionally No
Collaborative engagements	Yes, systematically Yes, occasionally No

07.4. Additional information. [Optional]

All our engagements are made by, or in collaboration with, our portfolio management teams, the other internal party to these engagements being the ethics committee. However, insights from e.g. customer interaction are passed on to the portfolio managers/CIO/ethics committee and outcomes communicated internally for better general awareness and more specific knowledge of portfolio holdings or exclusions.

As for LEA 07.2, then, it is not so much a case of "involving decision-makers" as of having investment decision-makers develop and execute the engagement program themselves. Ours is not a very big organization.

LEA 08. Tracking number of engagements

08.1. Indicate whether you track the number of your engagement activities.

Type of engagement	Tracking engagements
Individual/Internal staff engagements	Yes, we track the number of our engagements in full Yes, we partially track the number of our engagements We do not track
Collaborative engagements	Yes, we track the number of collaborative engagements in full Yes, we partially track the number of our collaborative engagements We do not track

08.2. Additional information. [Optional]

We only track engagements of a certain significance or lending themselves to being quantified.

Previous Section Next Section