Institutional Investors Survey: Updated skills and short and long-term incentive plans for board members

According to the main takeaways from Morrow Sodali's Institutional Investor Survey 2021, the annual poll of over 40 respondents, shareholders' engagement is a key priority, along with incorporating ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) and sustainability information into investment decisions.

The survey also reports that investors are ready to question the remuneration policies when inconsistent with the financial performance of the company. The pandemic revealed the true Achilles' heel for boards, having been in some cases challenged by the economic crisis and the emergency. This has impacted the financial performance of the companies and is progressively affecting the investors’ ratings too when voting on the remuneration policies and incentives.

"Corporates are under scrutiny throughout 2021, as both the firm's revenues and profitability will continue to be affected by the pandemic," comments Andrea Di Segni, Managing Director of Morrow Sodali, in his interview with Il Sole 24 Ore.

“The vast majority of the respondents request the ESG targets to be incorporated and this is part of the shareholder engagement, representing a significant change compared to the past,” adds Di Segni.

“And investors will pay attention to the boards’ skills composition, from cybersecurity to crisis management,” remarks Di Segni.

Read the full article here (in Italian).