Recommended Reading - Funds take greater role as activists, Globe and Mail

Steve Ladurantaye wrote a piece for Canada’s Globe and Mail about the increasing activism associated with Mutual Funds with respect to corporate management. According to Ladurantaye’s piece,

Mutual funds are becoming increasingly aggressive in voting against company management and using annual general meetings to push socially responsible agendas.

“You are seeing a less friendly attitude toward director nominees, for one thing,” said Laura O’Neill, director of law and policy for the Shareholder Association for Research and Education. “It’s a relatively positive sign that shows some movement toward a more critical approach to management.”

Don’t expect mutual funds to pressure management across the board but we can expect to see increased pressures on management by mutual funds when they determine specific corporate policies are not in their interest.