In the third quarter of 2018, we continued using shareholder advocacy for positive impact and long-term risk management. We resumed our dialogue with Amazon in light of its recent change in wage policy; we wrote to 14 companies encouraging them to disclose energy and water use data; we began advising a local campaign to divest Boston’s retirement funds from private prisons; we saw our impact deepen as Intel, after pushing from Zevin, convinced the Responsible Business Alliance to adopt stricter supply-chain policies around prison labor; and we published our firm's first-ever comprehensive Impact Report. Pat Miguel Tomaino has our quarterly advocacy update.
Impact Report 2018
Zevin Asset Management proudly presents our first comprehensive review of the positive impact we create on behalf of our clients. Watch this video and read our new Impact Report below.
Our socially responsible investing approach creates positive impact in the world. When we help convince companies to develop greenhouse gas targets, that helps address climate change. And when we press big tech firms to strengthen their diversity strategies, each success potentially impacts the lives of thousands of workers.
We’re pleased to review all of this work in our first-ever Impact Report. Read to learn more about how we press companies for change, our approach to voting at shareholder meetings, our portfolio footprint, and the sound business practices that have made us an industry leader and a Certified B Corporation.
Skin in the game: Why we’re leading a push for inclusion & accountability in the tech sector
The technology sector has historically excluded minority and women workers. Underrepresented people of color hold just nine percent of technical roles in the sector with above-average attrition rates. And women hold about one-third of entry-level tech jobs.
But inclusion isn’t just a matter of racial and gender justice. McKinsey & Company research shows that companies with leading approaches to inclusion are more likely to have above-average financial returns.
That’s why Zevin Asset Management began researching companies’ strategies to promote diversity and retain the most talented tech workers, no matter where they’re from or what they look like. We also channeled our clients’ investor voices for positive impact, challenging companies to link reasonable inclusion goals to the CEO’s paycheck.
Thanks for reading, watching the video above, and sharing comments with pat@zevin.com.
Caretaking & Human Capital: Why we’re leading an investor project on paid family leave
America faces a caregiving crisis. Approximately 87 percent of private sector workers in the United States do not have access to a single day of paid family leave. This can drive risk and opportunity for companies. Companies offering paid family leave to all workers, not just those at the top, report improved morale, as well as cost savings from less employee turnover.
In the absence of policy at the federal level, last year Zevin Asset Management decided it was time for responsible investors to ask companies about paid family leave policy and push big employers in the right direction. As featured in a recent issue of Fortune, our shareholder advocacy has already helped win key changes at major companies like CVS Health, Starbucks, and Walmart.
Thanks for reading, watching the video above, and sharing comments with pat@zevin.com.
Q2 2018 Advocacy Update
In the first quarter of 2018, we continued using shareholder advocacy for positive impact and long-term risk management. We won a landmark majority vote on climate risk management at Kinder Morgan; we joined with fellow investors to call out companies enabling the Trump administration’s risky and inhumane immigrant detention policies; we moved Google’s parent company Alphabet, and other tech companies, closer to racial and gender inclusion; we challenged Verizon on privacy and net neutrality; and, we joined a global coalition of investors pushing for access to medicines in the global South countries that need them. Pat Miguel Tomaino has our quarterly advocacy update.
Zevin Asset Management Honored as Best for the World 2018
Today, Zevin Asset Management earned a place for the third year in a row on the Best for the World lists within the B Corp community. This year Zevin Asset Management was named Best for Customers by scoring in the top 10 percent of all B Corporations because of the investment firm’s focus on solving social and environmental issues through its services.
Automobile Industry & the Electric Vehicle Revolution
The growth of the global automobile industry over the past century has been intrinsically tied to the internal combustion engine. Rapid advances in battery technology represent a sea change for the industry that has fueled the accelerating global rollout of electrified vehicles that will displace demand for conventional vehicles. The electrification of vehicles, both passenger and commercial, is a game changer that will disrupt the staid industry. Traditional manufacturers, suppliers, and distributors will be forced to confront the new electric car reality and the different competitors, economics, and regulations that accompany it. If done right, this important shift can have a significant positive effect on carbon emissions.