The Corporate Governance Analyst position will perform duties housed within the SBA’s Investment Programs & Governance unit, covering record-keeping and reporting on all public equity shareowner proxies for annual and special shareowner meetings and related topics. (more…)
Archive | December, 2013
Video Friday: The Cadbury Archive
The Cadbury Archive at Cambridge Judge Business School has been completed with the addition of copies of all the speeches on corporate governance made by Sir Adrian Cadbury, Chairman of the UK Committee on the Financial Aspects of Corporate Governance. The Archive, established in 2010 and part of the Cambridge Corporate Governance Network (CCGN), is a […]
Mediant Opens New Fulfillment Center
Mediant Communications, a provider of investor communications services and technology to banks, broker-dealers, mutual funds and corporations, today announced the opening of its new print-and-mail fulfillment center in Wayne, NJ. The new facility enables the company to service the expanding needs and diversity of its growing customer base. (more…)
IRRCi 5 Year Impact Report, Accepting Research Award Submissions
Since issuing their first report in 2009, the Investor Responsibility Research Center Institute has made a deep impact – far beyond their expectations. A new Five Year Impact Report recaps the 28 reports IRRCi has issued, which cover a wide range of contentious issues – executive compensation, fracking, political spending and proxy voting – to name a few. Since […]
Shareholder Primacy: Paradigm or GroupThink
Guest post from Peter Tunjic – Commercial lawyer, idea inventor, framework builder, business designer, board advisor and advocate and defender of free corporations. Peter writes at On Directorship and is “re-inventing the boardroom from capitalism’s forgotten first principles.” Thanks to Peter for permission to republish his following thought provoking post. Comments are always welcome but must come to me by […]
Last Opportunity to Vote for Proxy Access at Reeds Inc. (REED)
Reeds, Inc $REED; you read the Proxy, the crazy Preliminary Proxy, and the rationale for proxy access. You’ve seen the movie, where I explained the need for proxy access Now, don’t forget to vote! The annual meeting is December 20, 2013. According to ProxyVote.com, Internet voting is accepted up to 11:59 p.m. (ET) the day before the meeting/cut off date. That’s […]
WD-40 Seeks Director of Investor Relations & Corporate Communication
WD-40 $WDFC is seeking a passionate and driven Director of Investor Relations & Corporate Communication who brings to the table broad and deep experience in finance and corporate communication engaging the investment community with confidence and poise. The position manages the entire quarterly earnings process including logistics, preparation of press releases, presentations, scripts, Q&A, supplementary schedules, and […]
Best Coverage of SEC Proxy Advisory Services Roundtable
TheRacetotheBottom has by far the best coverage I’ve seen on the SEC’s roundtable. Congratulations. Those interested in the tweet stream during the event can check out Proxy Advisory Services Roundtable: Tweets & Links to Analysis. Of course, there was no one invited to the Roundtable to represent the interests of retail investors… left out again. My biggest […]
Video Friday: Vote "For" Proxy Access at Reeds Inc. (REED)
My first effort to record a video on corporate governance is about my proxy access proposal, now being voted on at Reeds Inc. (REED). The video below explains Reeds’ great potential and why I submitted a 2013 shareholder proposal to allow shareholders proxy access for up to two director nominees. Did you know 40% of […]
United Natural Foods (UNFI): How I Voted – Proxy Score 75
United Natural Foods, Inc. $UNFI is one of the stocks in my portfolio. Their annual meeting is coming up on 12/18/2013. ProxyDemocracy.org had collected the votes of four funds when I checked and voted on 12/11/2013. I voted with management 75% of the time. View Proxy Statement. Warning: Be sure to vote each item on the proxy. Any items left blank are […]
Using Sharegate: The Next Great Shareholder Communications Platform
One way to use Sharegate is to announce your proxy votes. Far too many retail shareowners just trash their proxies instead of using them. A common misconception is that shareowners should take the Wall Street Walk and sell if they are displeased with any aspect of a company they own. That is like saying you should […]
FactSet Research Systems Inc. (FDS): How I Voted – Proxy Score 80
FactSet Research Systems Inc. $FDS is one of the stocks in my portfolio. Their annual meeting is coming up on 12/17/2013. ProxyDemocracy.org had collected the votes of two funds when I checked and voted on 12/10/2013. I voted with management 80% of the time. View Proxy Statement. (more…)
Is Wall Street Capitalism Really “The Model”?
Guest post from David P. Ellerman who works in the fields of economics and political economy, social theory and philosophy, mathematical logic, and quantum mechanics. His undergraduate degree was in philosophy at M.I.T. (’65), and he has Masters degrees in Philosophy of Science (’67) and in Economics (’68), and a doctorate in Mathematics (’71) all from Boston […]
New Managing Director at ICGN
The International Corporate Governance Network (ICGN) announced that Kerrie Waring has been appointed as its new Managing Director following an international search over three months. The ICGN is the leading investor-led organisation of governance professionals, with members in over 50 countries, including institutional investors responsible for US$18 trillion in global assets. (more…)
Reeds Inc. (REED): The Case for Proxy Access & How I Voted
In mid-July I e-mailed investor relations at Reeds Inc. $REED (IR@reedsinc.com) asking if REED had a classified board or plurality requirements for director elections. Can shareowners call a special meeting or act by written consent? What supermajority requirements are in place re M&A or other actions? No response. This surprised and disappointed me since they were prompt […]
Video Friday: Jon Lukomnik on Executive Compensation and Short-termism
TK Kerstetter, Chairman, NYSE Governance Services / Corporate Board Member interviews one of the brightest minds in corporate governance, Jon Lukomnik, who serves as the executive director of the IRRC Institute. A columnist for Compliance Week, Mr. Lukomnik previously chaired the executive committee of the Council of Institutional Investors, co-founded and served as a governor of the […]
Proxy Advisory Services Roundtable: Tweets & Links to Analysis
CalPERS Launches Search for General Counsel
The California Public Employees’ Retirement System (CalPERS) is seeking a visionary in the legal profession for the role of General Counsel to serve as a critical member of the organization’s Executive Team in support of CalPERS pension and health care programs. The General Counsel advises the Board of Administration, Chief Executive Officer and the organization […]
AGM Foxholes Go Deeper
Wow, talk about holding a shareowner’s meeting in a foxhole; that’s not deep enough for Stillwater Mining (SWC)! Hat tip to Donna Anderson who wrote to say she got a kick out of our “foxhole” award when she saw it on Twitter. I guess I missed the deadline for nominations, but I have another doozy […]
Take Action: Proxy Advisory Services Roundtable Seeks Comments
On November 27, 2013 the SEC Announced the agenda and panelists for their 12/5/2013 Roundtable On Proxy Advisory Services. In the first session, participants will discuss, among other topics, the current use of proxy advisory services, including the factors that may have contributed to their use, the purposes and effects of using the services, and […]
Stock Buybacks: Smart or Foolish?
Should boards reexamine stock buybacks? That was the subject addressed by a distinguished panel during a recent SVDX program hosted at Stanford’s Rock Center for Corporate Governance. What follows is the SVDX meeting pitch, with issues and brief bios, followed by a few of my observations at the event. Watch the video wrap-up (below) from WMS media […]