PLANADVISER - November/December 2021 - 17

institutional investors, providing distinct
avenues to assess risk and preserve longterm
shareholder value, " he says. " Proxy
voting guidelines have evolved to add
more environmental and social criteria
into consideration, not less. "
... roughly 60% to
70% of the largest
managers have
custom proxy voting
guidelines.
More Changes Coming?
Beyond the regulatory environment, the
proxy market is evolving. One recent
example came in early October, when
BlackRock Inc. announced that, starting
on January 1, 2022,
it would expand the
proxy voting options available to its institutional
clients invested in certain index
strategies. Currently, BlackRock typically
votes on behalf of its funds' investors.
According to a press release from the firm,
approximately 40% of the $4.8 trillion
index equity assets BlackRock manages
for its clients will be eligible for these new
voting options.
Per the announcement, clients will
have a few options when voting: They will
be able to vote proxies according to their
own policies and transmit their votes
using their own voting infrastructure;
talking points
Women Opening Retail Accounts
Sixty-seven percent of women now invest
outside of their defined contribution
retirement account, up from 44% in
2018. The number of women investing
non-retirement funds has increased
by 50% in just three years.
Source: " Fidelity Investments 2021 Women and Investing Study "
2021
2018
67%
they may choose from a menu of thirdparty
proxy voting policies; and they
may vote directly on select resolutions
or companies, among other capabilities.
Those clients that wish to will be able to
continue to rely on the BlackRock Investment
Stewardship program, which votes
proxies on behalf of clients.
Separate from the DOL action, the
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
has proposed amendments to Form N-PX,
" Annual Report of Proxy Voting Record
of Registered Management
Investment
Company. " According to a legal update
from Stradley Ronon, the proposed amendments
are designed to enhance disclosure
by requiring funds to identify the subject
matter of the reported proxy votes.
From an adviser's perspective, the
information on the revised Form N-PX
would provide greater insight into how
closely a fund's voting patterns align with
the plan sponsor's values. For example,
if BlackRock's change causes more fund
managers to allow split proxy voting,
it
could create new opportunities for plans
to vote their values versus defaulting to
the fund manager.
It could also result in the development
of proxy advisory services that focus
on specific themes. Hoeppner says the
industry is not there yet, but he speculates
that proxy advisory services that have
pro-environmental or pro-manufacturing
perspectives, for instance, could emerge.
Plan advisers could use these services to
help their plan clients determine their
votes. -Ed McCarthy
➜ Dimensional
Fund Advisors (DFA)
has appointed Jim
Whittington as head of
responsible investment.
He replaces Joe Chi, who
will retire at the end of the
year. Additionally, Lacey
Huebel was named
North American head of
responsible investment.
➜ TIAA has
appointed Stephen
Tisdalle to the newly
created role of chief
brand and demand
generation officer. He
will be responsible for
all marketing for TIAA's
institutional, wealth adviser
and consumer channels.
➜ HealthEquity Inc., a
health savings account
non-bank custodian, has
completed its acquisition
of Further, a provider
of HSA and consumerdirected
benefit
administration services
and an HSA custodian.
➜ Clarion Partners, a
real estate investment
manager, has hired
Karen Mahrous as a
senior vice president and
head of environmental,
social and governance.
44%
➜ Jack Woolnough has
joined The Standard as
regional sales director for
the central region of the
company's retirement
plans division.
planadviser.com November-December 2021 | 17
➜
http://www.planadviser.com
PLANADVISER - November/December 2021

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