Standard Life Nordea Global Diversity Engagement Pension Fund
SRI Style:
Social Style
SDR Labelling:
-
Product:
Pension
Fund Region:
Global
Fund Asset Type:
Mixed Asset
Launch Date:
01/12/2020
Last Amended:
Nov 2024
Dialshifter (
):
Fund Size:
£1.15m
(as at: 31/12/2023)
ISIN:
GB00BFCNP622, GB00BFCNP739
Contact Us:
Objectives:
The fund seeks to deliver attractive risk-adjusted long-term returns by investing in sustainable companies of the global equity market that recognize the importance of a diverse workplace and are implementing concrete measures targeting companies that meet our expectations on diversity, such as but not limited to Gender, Ethnicity, Age and Socioeconomic Status. It has a special focus on companies that are working actively to improve, for instance through shareholder engagement, one or several of the diversity areas, and that appear to offer superior growth prospects1 and investment characteristics. The fund is actively managed and its official reference index – MSCI All Country World NDR – is used for performance comparison only.
Sustainable, Responsible
&/or ESG Overview:
This Pension product is linked to the "Nordea 1 – Global Diversity Engagement" fund. The following information refers to the primary fund.
This fund is a global equity thematic solution that promotes Diversity & Inclusion (D&I) as a driver for social change, while also taking advantage of the positive correlation between above average D&I practices and corporate financial performance.
We look for companies which are promoting gender diversity and implementing concrete measures; but at the same time present strong business fundamentals and growth outlooks. Gender diversity is the first step towards supporting a more fair and equal society. Companies willing and able to put in the extra resources to make sure they are diverse will benefit from those actions going forward.
The fund can also offer an attractive value proposition to those sharing the view that the best way to achieve a more diverse corporate environment that offers equal opportunities of integration to all, is by Engaging with companies and supporting them in a well-defined path towards D&I excellence.
Primary fund last amended:
Nov 2024
Information directly from fund manager.
Fund Filters
Sustainability - General
Find funds where there is a significant emphasis on (environmental and social) sustainability. Funds with a 'sustainability theme' typically place more emphasis on the area than funds with a 'sustainability policy' - meaning that it is more likely to drive investment selection. Strategies vary. See fund information for further detail.
A core element of these funds aim to encourage higher sustainability standards across business practices through responsible ownership / stewardship / engagement / voting activity
Find funds that use the UN Global Compact to inform or help direct where they can or cannot invest and will typically not invest in companies with significant breaches (low standards) - although strategies vary. (The UNGC covers a wide range of issues - search 'UNGC'). See https://unglobalcompact.org/
Find funds that specifically aim to invest (and manage assets) in ways that help to address all or some of the UN's Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). See https://sdgs.un.org/goals).
Environmental - General
Funds that limit or 'reduce' their exposure to carbon intensive industries (ie sectors which are major contributors to climate change. Funds vary - some funds may be 'underweight' in this area which means they may have some investment in highly carbon intensive areas. Funds of this kind may choose companies they consider to be 'best in sector' and encourage ever higher standards. Strategies vary. See fund information for further details.
Climate Change & Energy
Funds that avoid investing in major coal, oil and/or gas (extraction) companies. Funds vary: some may exclude all companies that extract oil. Others may have exposure to oil extraction via more diversified energy companies. See fund literature to confirm details.
Funds that avoid companies involved in fracking and tar sands - which are widely regarded as controversial methods of oil and gas extraction. Strategies vary. See fund information for further information.
Funds that avoid companies that are involved in extracting oil from the Arctic regions. See fund literature for further details.
Funds that avoid investing in companies with coal, oil and gas reserves. See fund information for further details.
The fund manager excludes companies with direct involvement in fossil fuel exploration (eg coal, oil and gas companies)
This fund has a strategy that aims ensure its holdings will gradually reduce their greenhouse gas emissions in line with targets set at COP21 in Paris. The ultimate aim is to achieve ‘net zero emissions by 2050’ and a ‘maximum global temperature increase of +1.5 to +2 degrees above preindustrial levels’. Strategies and opinions vary. Read fund information.
Find funds that require all, or almost all, of the companies it invests in to have a ‘net zero action plan’ - meaning that the companies they invest in have worked out how they will, over time, reduce their total carbon (and other greenhouse gas) emissions to nil.
Social / Employment
Find funds that invest in line with positive strategies that relate to 'people' issues - such as having strong human rights, labour standards and equal opportunities practices. Such funds are likely to invest in companies that have market leading standards with regard to employee and supplier practices. Read fund literature for further information.
Find individual funds that have a written diversity policy – where the fund manager will aim to select companies with a carefully considered, sound approach to diversity. This should ideally cover a range of issues including gender, ethnicity, disability, beliefs, sexual orientation, etc.
Ethical Values Led Exclusions
Find funds that have policies that set out their position on ethical or 'personal values' based issues. Strategies vary. See fund information for further detail.
Companies are excluded if they make more than 5% of their revenue from the manufacture, sale or distribution of tobacco products including cigarettes, vaping, e-cigarettes, chewing tobacco and cigars.
Find funds that avoid investment in companies involved in the production of alcohol. Strategies vary; some funds allow a small proportion of profits to come from this area. See fund literature for further information.
Find funds that avoid companies with significant involvement in the gambling industry. Some funds may allow a small proportion of profits to come from this area. See fund policy for further details.
Find funds that avoid companies that derive significant income from pornography and related areas. Strategies vary. See fund details for further information.
Human Rights
Find funds that have policies relating to human rights issues. Funds of this kind typically require companies to demonstrate higher standards, although some fund managers work to encourage improvements. Investee companies are often judged against internationally agreed norms or standards. Strategies vary. See fund information for further detail.
Gilts & Sovereigns
Find funds that do not invest in / exclude 'sovereigns' - debt issued by governments. See eg https://www.investopedia.com/terms/s/sovereign-debt.asp
Governance & Management
Exclude companies that are subject to United Nations sanctions. See eg https://main.un.org/securitycouncil/en/content/un-sc-consolidated-list
Find funds that have policies explaining how managers will respond to assets / companies that do not comply with relevant anti-bribery and anti-corruption standards or laws. Strategies vary; options include stewardship/ engagement and divestment - or a combination. See fund literature for further information.
Fund managers encourage the companies they invest in to have more diverse board structures (e.g. more women on boards)
A core element of these funds will aim to encourage higher ESG standards through responsible ownership / stewardship / engagement /voting activity
Fund Governance
Find funds that factor in 'environmental, social and governance' issues as part of their investment decision making process. A focus on 'ESG' typically means a fund is carrying out additional research to help reduce ESG related risks. It does not necessarily mean a focus on sustainability. Strategies vary. See fund literature.
Environmental, social and governance issues are part of this fund’s reporting of their ‘value’ to clients. AoV reporting is a statutory requirement. Including ESG factors in its calculation is not.
Asset Size
Find funds that invests more than half of their money into what are commonly regarded as 'large companies'. This will typically mean that the market capitalisation (or value) of the companies they hold is in excess of £5 to £10 billion.
Find funds that have SRI strategies and focus their investment stock selection on larger companies. (e.g. over circa £5-£10bn)
How The Fund Works
Find funds that focus on finding and investing in companies with positive / beneficial attributes. This strategy can be applied in addition to exclusion criteria and engagement/stewardship activity.
Find funds where their main 'ethical approach' is to avoid companies by using negative screening criteria. Read fund literature for further information.
Single resource themed funds focus their investment strategy on a single natural 'resource' eg water. See fund information for further detail.
Find funds that make stock selection (and ongoing fund management) decisions based on ESG data or company ratings (normally supplied by third parties) rather than focusing on what individual companies do, how they operate or their plans for the future
Aims to avoid companies that do significant harm. This originates from the EU’s sustainable finance ‘DNSH’ (do no significant harm) work, which is not necessarily used by UK investors.
Find funds that make significant use of internationally agreed 'norms' (e.g. United Nations Global Compact - UNGC - or the UN Sustainable Development Goals - SDGs) as part of their investment selection process alongside additional SRI criteria such as positive or negative stock selection policies and/or stewardship strategies.
Find funds that have an ESG strategy (which is typically focused on avoiding companies that pose environmental, social or governance related risks) with additional criteria such as positive and/or negative screens, themes and stewardship strategies.
Find funds that consider both the 'positive' and 'negative' aspects of company behaviour and make balanced, considered decisions as part of their investment approach. May apply to a range of different issues and policy areas.
Find funds that use internationally agreed standards, conventions and 'norms' to help direct where the fund can and cannot invest (e.g. the UN Global Compact, UN Sustainable Development Goals). Read fund literature for further information.
This fund does not use stock lending for performance or risk purposes.
Unscreened Assets & Cash
Fund that only invest in cash to aid the practical management (buying and selling) of assets. These funds do not use additional financial instruments.
Intended Clients & Product Options
Finds funds designed to meet the needs of individual investors with an interest in sustainability issues.
Fund Management Company Information
About The Business
Find fund management companies that are smaller or specialise in particular areas - notably, ideally ESG related. Strategies vary.
Finds fund management companies that have a published company wide stewardship, engagement and / or responsible ownership policy or strategy that covers all investments. Stewardship typically involves encouraging higher ESG standards through voting and dialogue.
Find fund management companies that actively encourage higher 'environmental, social and governance' and/or 'sustainable and responsible investment' practices across investee companies - typically where the aim is to encourage positive change that is aligned with the best interests of investors. Strategies vary. See additional information and options.
Find fund managers that vote all* the shares they own at Annual General Meetings and Extraordinary General Meetings. A commitment to voting shares is a key indicator of 'responsible share ownership' demonstrating their support for or disagreement with management policy. (*situations can legitimately, occasionally occur where voting proves impossible, but in principle all shares should be voted.)
Find fund managers that consider responsible ownership and ESG to be a key differentiator for their business.
The leadership team of this asset manager have performance targets linked to environmental goals.
Find fund management companies that aim to align all their investments (across all funds) to help meet the aims of the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
Find funds run by fund managers that apply Responsible ownership or 'Stewardship' policies to all or most of their investment assets. This means active involvement (e.g. voting, dialogue) with the companies they invest in across funds (not normally limited to ethical or SRI options.) Read fund literature for further information.
Finds organisations / fund managers that have an in-house (company wide) diversity improvement programme - meaning that they are working to ensure that within their own businesses they employ people from diverse backgrounds - often typically focused on ethnicity and/or sex.
Find fund management companies that encourage the companies they invest in to have strong diversity, race, gender and other equality policies across all assets held, not simply screened or themed SRI/ESG funds. (ie Asset Management company wide).
Fund management entity offers unstructured intermediary training on sustainable investment (ie for financial advisers and wealth managers)
Fund management entity offers unstructured intermediary training on sustainable investment (ie for financial advisers and wealth managers)
Collaborations & Affiliations
Find fund management companies that have signed up to the UN backed 'Principles of Responsible Investment'.
Fund management entity is a member of the Investment Association https://www.theia.org/
Resources
Find fund management companies that employ people to steer and support fund managers in voting shares at company AGM's and EGMs in ways that are consistent with encouraging higher ESG/sustainability standards.
Find a fund management company that directly employs specialist ESG/SRI/sustainability researchers or analysts. This allows asset managers to discuss environmental, social and governance risks and opportunities directly with companies.
Find fund management companies that makes use of expert external research companies. This can help deliver specialist expertise and means resources are pooled with other investors.
Accreditations
Finds organisations / fund managers that have an A+ PRI rating - meaning they are highly rated according to the 'Principles of Responsible Investment'
Find fund managers that are signatories to the FRC UK Stewardship Code, which sets out a framework for constructive investor / investee relations where fund managers are encouraged to behave like responsible, typically longer term 'company owners'.
Engagement Approach
Find fund management companies that regularly initiate or run industry wide (collaborative) investor projects aimed at raising environmental, social and governance standards amongst investee companies.
Find fund management companies that are working with the companies they invest in to encourage more responsible corporate taxation.
Fund manager has stewardship /responsible ownership strategy that is focused on addressing climate change with investee assets.
Asset manager has a stewardship /responsible ownership strategy that involves working with fossil fuel companies on climate change related issues. See fund manager website for details.
Asset manager has stewardship /responsible ownership strategy with involves encouraging investee asset to reduce plastic waste and pollution.
The asset manager has a responsible ownership / stewardship strategy that focuses on biodiversity and nature issues relating to the assets they invest the aim of which will be to reduce harm and or deliver improvement. Strategies vary. https://tnfd.global
Asset manager has responsible ownership / stewardship strategy in place which aims to address human rights issues in investee companies (and potentially their suppliers) with the aim of raising standards
Asset manager has responsible ownership / stewardship strategy in place that aims to improve labour standards for the benefit of employees in investee companies (and potentially their suppliers)
Asset management company has a stewardship strategy in place which involves working to raise diversity, equality and inclusion standards across investee assets
working with the assets they hold to help stamp out modern slavery - where direct or indirect company employees are exploited for business benefits.
Fund managers have stewardship strategies in place that focus on improving governance standards across investee assets
Has a stewardship / responsible ownership strategy that encourages responsible supply chain - ie the managers will discuss environmental, social and governance issues with investee companies with the aim of raising standards
Company Wide Exclusions
Find fund management companies (not funds) that avoid investment in 'controversial weapons' across all of their funds and other investment vehicles.
Find fund management companies that avoid investment in fossil fuel companies (e.g. coal, oil and gas) across all of their funds. (and/ or other assets.)
This asset manager excludes direct investment in the coal mining industry. Managers ability to do this may depend on the geographic regions in which they invest.
Climate & Net Zero Transition
Fund management organisations that have pledged to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions to ‘net zero’. Strategies vary - this area is changing rapidly.
Fund manager AGM / EGM voting strategy has processes in place that mean they will normally be expected to vote in a way that will encourage the transition to net zero greenhouse gas emissions.
Find fund management companies that have published a Climate Risk policy or statement that is signed / owned by their Chief Executive.
This asset management company has set a date by which they plan to achieve net zero greenhouse gas / CO2e emissions.
Find fund management companies that are working with the companies they invest in to encourage reductions in carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emissions.
Finds organisations / fund managers that have published ‘forward looking climate metrics’ e.g. 'implied temperature rise' data that are a total of the asset management company's share (% owned) of all the investee company emissions of the assets they manage, as well as their own direct and other indirect emissions.
Find fund management companies that are working to reduce their own (fund management company) carbon/greenhouse gas emissions.
Finds organisations / fund management companies that are in the process of working out how to make a ‘net zero commitment’ - meaning that when that is finalised they will have started the process of reducing their total greenhouse gas emissions to'zero'.
Transparency
Find fund management companies that publish a report detailing their responsible investment ownership - also known as 'Stewardship' - activity.
Find companies that publish information about their sustainable and responsible investment strategies on their company website.
Fund management companies that publish a full record of how they vote their shares at AGMs (annual general meetings) and EGMs (extraordinary general meetings). Voting strategies have an important role to play encouraging higher environmental, social and governance standards.
This asset management company has published a plan that explains how they will align to the climate change commitments made at the Paris Climate Talks, COP21.
This asset management company has published a plan that explains how they are going to achieve net zero greenhouse gas / CO2e emissions.
Find fund management companies that have supplied Dialshifter information. See Dialshifter tab within record for more information.
Sustainable, Responsible &/or ESG Policy:
The fund is a unique global equity thematic solution that promotes Diversity & Inclusion (D&I) as drivers for social change. The portfolio’s investment process has been designed to add a data-driven overlay to enhance what is already a robust fundamental & bottom-up thematic investment approach.
In terms of corporate level exclusions and as part of our comprehensive Responsible Investing (RI) Framework, the fund is subject to an ongoing norms-based screening process, used to identify listed companies allegedly involved in breaches of, or controversies around, international law, and norms on environmental protection, human rights, labour standards and anticorruption. Examples of such norms and standards include the UN Global Compact and the OECD Guidelines for Multinationals. If a company is identified in this screening process, an internal assessment of the norms breach is initiated. The assessment is conducted by the Responsible Investment team, which provides a recommendation to the Responsible Investment Committee (RIC). Typical actions which the RIC decides on include engagement, quarantine or exclusion.
The policy also defines our positions on sectors that are linked to material ESG issues, going beyond the international norms and conventions. This helps ensuring that the companies we are invested in meet our expectations of sound ESG performance, including clear positions regarding the operation of our investee companies in line with our commitment to the PRI and in observance of existing laws and regulations, as well as standards for sound environmental, social and governance performance. The positions are regarding illegal and nuclear weapons, certain fossil fuels and natural resources, climate change, corruption, human rights, water management, business activities in conflict areas, investments in countries under international sanctions and pornography.
Our RI policy covers all of our actively managed strategies and is publicly available on our website: https://www.nordeaassetmanagement.com/responsible-investment
Nordea maintains a list of companies that are excluded from our entire actively managed fund range, either due to our corporate wide exclusion limits or for reasons specific to the individual company. Any addition to – or removal from – the list is decided by the RIC. Our continuously updated exclusion list available in the following link: https://www.nordea.com/en/sustainability/exclusion
Moreover, in terms of ESG standards, the fund does not invest in companies involved in serious violations of widely accepted corporate behaviour, certain controversial business activities and extended ESG risks:
- We avoid ESG laggards, which means that we do not invest in C scored companies according to Nordea proprietary ESG scoring model (owned by Nordea Responsible Investment Team). If no internal score is available, then MSCIs ESG ratings are used. In this framework, CCC and B rated companies are excluded.
- We follow the Nordea’s Paris-Aligned Fossil Fuel Policy (PAFF), as described in our website: https://www.nordea.lu/documents/esg-paris-aligned-fossil-fuel-policy/ESGPAFF_eng_INT.pdf
- We do not invest in companies that have activities that account for more than 5% of the turnover related to military equipment, alcohol, tobacco, and gambling.
- In addition, we monitor the carbon footprint of our portfolio. The carbon footprint of the fund, when measured in ‘intensity in t/USD million sales’, should be at least 25% lower than that of the MSCI All Country World index.
Additionally, the fund is classified as Article 8 according to the Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR). The fund doesn’t have a sustainable investment objective however, it promotes Environmental(E)/Social(S) characteristics and while it does not have as its objective a sustainable investment, it will have a minimum proportion of 50% of sustainable investments with a social objective.
The Social characteristics promoted include the following features:
Minimum proportion of sustainable investments: The fund promotes E/S characteristics by partially investing in companies and issuers involved in activities that contribute to an environmental or social objective as outlined in UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and/or the EU Taxonomy, while not significantly harming any other environmental or social objectives and following good governance practices.
Promoting diversity: The fund promotes E/S characteristics by focusing on companies that meet the investment manager's expectations on diversity or are working actively to improve in one or several diversity areas. The data that is currently available is predominantly related to gender equality and gender diversity. As data quality and availability evolve, the strategy may gradually be able to formally adopt a broader range of diversity indicators such as ethnicity, age and socioeconomic status.
ESG scoring: The fund promotes E/S characteristics by investing in companies or issuers with favourable ESG scores. Investee companies or issuers have been analysed and scored by NAM or by an external provider to ensure that only securities issued by companies that meet the minimum required ESG score are eligible for inclusion and that ESG laggards are excluded.
Sector- and value-based exclusions: The fund promotes E/S characteristics by excluding companies that are deemed to be inappropriate based on their business activities or corporate behaviour.
NAM’s Paris-Aligned Fossil Fuel Policy: The fund promotes E/S characteristics by refraining from investing in companies that have significant exposure to fossil fuels unless they have a credible transition strategy.
There is no reference benchmark designated for the purpose of attaining the E/S characteristics of the fund.
Process:
The Global Diversity Engagement Fund investment process utilizes both quantitative and qualitative assessments to select the desired portfolio. We look for companies which are promoting gender diversity and implementing concrete measures; but at the same time present strong business fundamentals and growth outlooks.
- Investment Universe
Our opportunity set is made of sustainable companies displaying a certain level of gender diversity representation at higher management levels. This consists of around 3,000 companies which are screened based on the following criteria:
Minimum Diversity Standards:
- The companies entering our investment universe must display a minimum degree of gender diversity.
- The under-represented gender is minimum 30% in at least one upper management level (i.e. board, management, executive, and CEO or Chairperson).
- If the company shows a positive trend in increasing and promoting diversity, the limit can be lowered to 20%.
These secure that our investment candidates have a minimum degree of gender diversity in upper management levels; yet we also allow for upcoming gender diverse companies to enter our universe, as they are actively working to increase gender diversity. Generally, gender diversity is important throughout the organization. However, as companies undergo a cultural change, research shows that a commitment is needed from the top in order to succeed: which is our reason for focusing on the upper level management at this step.
ESG standards:
We do not invest in companies involved in serious violations of widely accepted corporate behaviour, certain controversial business activities and extended ESG risks:
- We avoid ESG laggards, which means that we do not invest in C scored companies according to Nordea proprietary ESG scoring model (owned by Nordea Responsible Investment Team). If no internal score is available, then MSCIs ESG ratings are used. In this framework, CCC and B rated companies are excluded.
- Global Diversity Engagement Fund adheres to Nordea’s RI policy and Exclusion List that excludes certain sectors and companies.
- We follow the Nordea’s Paris-Aligned Fossil Fuel Policy (PAFF)
- We do not invest in companies that have activities that account for more than 5% of the turnover related to military equipment, pornography, alcohol, tobacco, and gambling.
- In addition, we monitor the carbon footprint of our portfolio. The carbon footprint of the fund, when measured in ‘intensity in t/USD million sales’, should be at least 25% lower than that of the MSCI All Country World index.
- Liquidity Filter
Screening based on liquidity allows us to avoid companies too illiquid for our portfolio. This step filters away companies with less than USD 2m in average daily trade. Moreover, the team also screens out companies that are not regularly covered by sell-side analysts. This filter is applied as some of the quantitative models used later on in the process require earnings estimates to measure the fundamental strength and momentum of the given companies. This leaves us with around 2,000 companies, which also shows that not only large cap names qualify in our universe.
- Quantitative Assessment
With a strong investment case, we think gender diversity pairs well with known return-drivers. Therefore, we apply our quantitative stock screening tool to have a first selection in terms of quantitative assessment. The team uses a proprietary bottom-up quantitative model to rank individual stocks across each segment. The main inputs into the model are fundamental factors that have proven to be indicative of future excess return in rigorous back testing and confirmed with live implementation. The model screens on a selection items:
- Valuation
- Quality
- Momentum:
- Short term reversals
- Earnings revision
- Success
- Growth
The combined weight of Value and Quality must be at least 50% in each segment, and Value and Quality have a minimum weight of 5% each. For the remaining risk premia, the weights can vary since not all segments are alike and we continuously test and adapt them, based on historical performances.
Within a subset of comparable companies, we rank each company according to their fundamentals:
- Each factor has a uniformed score from -1 (worst) to +1 (best)
- Ranking (from 1 to 100) is calculated by multiplying each score by the weight of each factor for this particular segment
- Each factor weight is dynamically adjusted according to their explanatory power of excess returns
In this step, we screen away 75% of the companies, only keeping the companies ranking in the best quartile within each segment. This leaves us with around 500 companies: a very effective way for us to focus our energy on the companies ranking in the top of their peer groups.
- Qualitative Assessment
In the qualitative assessment, we analyze closely the remaining companies. We believe that it is an essential component, as it ensures that the assumptions behind the quantitative models are valid and give us the opportunity to dedicate our time to understand and select the companies which will enter the portfolio. All these components go into our final estimation of the company. We look closer at the companies, their business and their fundamentals. Why did the company ended up in the best quartile of its segment? What are the risks and what are the opportunities for this company? Generally, we favor companies presenting strong business fundamentals and growth outlook. As part of this analysis, we look at factors such as:
- Earnings (historical and estimated)
- Valuation (absolute and relative)
- Estimate revisions
- Margin development
The qualitative analysis includes the fundamental ESG integration, and more specifically on gender diversity matters. The aim is to avoid companies that are likely to face headwinds driven by rapidly evolving regulatory, environmental, demographic or technological trends. We leverage on Nordea internal research and actively use proprietary ESG information to get a better understanding of the opportunities and difficulties the companies are facing in regards to ESG risks. For this, we have created a proprietary D&I score to support a structured approach in assessing the level of diversity throughout a company. The score is based on different factors such as:
- Reporting on gender diversity and equality
- % of diversity in top management
- % of diversity in middle management
- Promotion & career development opportunities
- Positive change trend in upper management diversity
- Gender policies in place (equal opportunities, gender pay gap)
- Efforts and practices for an inclusive workplace
The focus here is on the level of gender diversity not only in top management levels but also in in middle management. Several aspects are of particular interest: e.g. diversity in general within the workforce (does the company reports on it? We calculate the diversity in the workforce for that segment based on the companies that give out the data), diversity in different managerial levels compared to the diversity in the workforce (are companies successful in promoting and developing all their talents?), the development in gender diversity in upper level management over the past years along with gender policies in place (is the company promoting and succeeding in implementing gender diversity?). More than just a score, this approach allows us to have a comprehensive understanding on the current company gender diversity policy and progresses. Furthermore, the gender diversity raw score is uniformed within each segments to allow for comparison.
- Portfolio Construction and Risk Management
The portfolio construction process combines the stock selection process with a risk-budgeting framework. Specific weights are assessed based on the conviction in the company and the overall risk consideration. Please note that the fund does not have an official reference index; however for risk management purposes, we use the MSCI All Country World index as an internal benchmark.
We aim to be fairly region and sector neutral relative to the market and we therefore focus on picking the best companies within each segment. Yet, it is harder to find companies in certain sectors/countries (e.g. Japan, Emerging markets, Communication Services) that live up to our gender diversity standards. This is the reason why we tend to have an underweight in these regions/sectors. We therefore have the flexibility to add opportunities from other regions/specific sector. Generally our largest active weights when comparing the portfolio to the MSCI All Country World index is below 3%.
It’s fair to say that the largest part of the portfolio’s active risk and return, should come from security selection and not sector/regional allocation. Moreover, the security selection will be mainly driven by our multi-factor models, our D&I standards and our fundamental preferences.
Resources, Affiliations & Corporate Strategies:
Our RI efforts, in particular our ESG integration and engagement activities, are supported by Nordea Asset Management’s in-house Responsible Investments team (“RI team”). Formed in 2009, Nordea’s RI team is one of the most highly-regarded in Europe in terms of pure ESG analysts. It is composed of 25 analysts, who work closely with their respective portfolio management teams in Copenhagen, Stockholm, Oslo and Singapore.
The team maintains both a broad coverage and a particular focus on ESG-enhanced strategies (i.e. the ESG STARS and sustainable thematic strategies), working closely with the respective investment teams.
The team carries out its various functions in four clusters:
- Investment Stewardship: The Investment Stewardship team is responsible for NAM’s engagement framework, including escalation procedures, proxy voting, firm-level PAI process as well as for driving the Responsible Investment Committee agenda.
- Sustainability Research: The Sustainability Research team carries out company and sector specific ESG research and engagement for NAM’s ESG funds, as well as ESG product development. This includes our proprietary ESG scoring.
- Climate & Nature: The Climate & Nature team maintains focused expertise and analysis of climate change and biodiversity factors and policies, implementation, engagement campaigns and reporting (e.g. Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) recommendations).
- ESG Quant: the ESG Quant team develops and maintains NAM’s proprietary ESG scoring model and platform, as well as other advanced applications of ESG data.
Additionally, Participating in investor initiatives is a way for us to exchange knowledge, shape the sustainable finance industry and to benchmark and develop our own ESG approach and framework. During 2023, Nordea Asset Management (“NAM”) was active in 37 investor initiatives across a broad range of ESG topics. We were also active in several Sustainable Investment Forums (SIFs) around Europe, and participated in numerous engagements in collaboration with other investors. Some of the initiatives we are currently participants of are: Climate Action 100+, Net Zero Asset Managers Initiative, Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI), UN Global Compact, among others.
Voting Record
Disclaimer
1 There can be no warranty that an investment objective, targeted returns and results of an investment structure is achieved. The value of your investment can go up and down, and you could lose some or all of your invested money.
Fund Name | SRI Style | SDR Labelling | Product | Region | Asset Type | Launch Date | Last Amended |
|
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Standard Life Nordea Global Diversity Engagement Pension Fund |
Social Style | - | Pension | Global | Mixed Asset | 01/12/2020 | Nov 2024 | |
ObjectivesThe fund seeks to deliver attractive risk-adjusted long-term returns by investing in sustainable companies of the global equity market that recognize the importance of a diverse workplace and are implementing concrete measures targeting companies that meet our expectations on diversity, such as but not limited to Gender, Ethnicity, Age and Socioeconomic Status. It has a special focus on companies that are working actively to improve, for instance through shareholder engagement, one or several of the diversity areas, and that appear to offer superior growth prospects1 and investment characteristics. The fund is actively managed and its official reference index – MSCI All Country World NDR – is used for performance comparison only. |
Fund Size: £1.15m (as at: 31/12/2023) ISIN: GB00BFCNP622, GB00BFCNP739 Contact Us: nordeafunds@nordea.com |
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Sustainable, Responsible &/or ESG OverviewThis Pension product is linked to the "Nordea 1 – Global Diversity Engagement" fund. The following information refers to the primary fund.
This fund is a global equity thematic solution that promotes Diversity & Inclusion (D&I) as a driver for social change, while also taking advantage of the positive correlation between above average D&I practices and corporate financial performance. We look for companies which are promoting gender diversity and implementing concrete measures; but at the same time present strong business fundamentals and growth outlooks. Gender diversity is the first step towards supporting a more fair and equal society. Companies willing and able to put in the extra resources to make sure they are diverse will benefit from those actions going forward. The fund can also offer an attractive value proposition to those sharing the view that the best way to achieve a more diverse corporate environment that offers equal opportunities of integration to all, is by Engaging with companies and supporting them in a well-defined path towards D&I excellence. |
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Primary fund last amended: Nov 2024 |
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Information received directly from Fund Manager |
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Fund FiltersSustainability - General
Sustainability theme or focus
Find funds where there is a significant emphasis on (environmental and social) sustainability. Funds with a 'sustainability theme' typically place more emphasis on the area than funds with a 'sustainability policy' - meaning that it is more likely to drive investment selection. Strategies vary. See fund information for further detail.
Encourage more sustainable practices through stewardship
A core element of these funds aim to encourage higher sustainability standards across business practices through responsible ownership / stewardship / engagement / voting activity
UN Global Compact linked exclusion policy
Find funds that use the UN Global Compact to inform or help direct where they can or cannot invest and will typically not invest in companies with significant breaches (low standards) - although strategies vary. (The UNGC covers a wide range of issues - search 'UNGC'). See https://unglobalcompact.org/
UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) focus
Find funds that specifically aim to invest (and manage assets) in ways that help to address all or some of the UN's Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). See https://sdgs.un.org/goals). Environmental - General
Limits exposure to carbon intensive industries
Funds that limit or 'reduce' their exposure to carbon intensive industries (ie sectors which are major contributors to climate change. Funds vary - some funds may be 'underweight' in this area which means they may have some investment in highly carbon intensive areas. Funds of this kind may choose companies they consider to be 'best in sector' and encourage ever higher standards. Strategies vary. See fund information for further details. Climate Change & Energy
Coal, oil & / or gas majors excluded
Funds that avoid investing in major coal, oil and/or gas (extraction) companies. Funds vary: some may exclude all companies that extract oil. Others may have exposure to oil extraction via more diversified energy companies. See fund literature to confirm details.
Fracking and tar sands excluded
Funds that avoid companies involved in fracking and tar sands - which are widely regarded as controversial methods of oil and gas extraction. Strategies vary. See fund information for further information.
Arctic drilling exclusion
Funds that avoid companies that are involved in extracting oil from the Arctic regions. See fund literature for further details.
Fossil fuel reserves exclusion
Funds that avoid investing in companies with coal, oil and gas reserves. See fund information for further details.
Fossil fuel exploration exclusion - direct involvement
The fund manager excludes companies with direct involvement in fossil fuel exploration (eg coal, oil and gas companies)
Paris aligned fund strategy
This fund has a strategy that aims ensure its holdings will gradually reduce their greenhouse gas emissions in line with targets set at COP21 in Paris. The ultimate aim is to achieve ‘net zero emissions by 2050’ and a ‘maximum global temperature increase of +1.5 to +2 degrees above preindustrial levels’. Strategies and opinions vary. Read fund information.
Require net zero action plan from all/most companies
Find funds that require all, or almost all, of the companies it invests in to have a ‘net zero action plan’ - meaning that the companies they invest in have worked out how they will, over time, reduce their total carbon (and other greenhouse gas) emissions to nil. Social / Employment
Favours companies with strong social policies
Find funds that invest in line with positive strategies that relate to 'people' issues - such as having strong human rights, labour standards and equal opportunities practices. Such funds are likely to invest in companies that have market leading standards with regard to employee and supplier practices. Read fund literature for further information.
Diversity, equality & inclusion Policy (fund level)
Find individual funds that have a written diversity policy – where the fund manager will aim to select companies with a carefully considered, sound approach to diversity. This should ideally cover a range of issues including gender, ethnicity, disability, beliefs, sexual orientation, etc. Ethical Values Led Exclusions
Ethical policies
Find funds that have policies that set out their position on ethical or 'personal values' based issues. Strategies vary. See fund information for further detail.
Tobacco and related products - avoid where revenue > 5%
Companies are excluded if they make more than 5% of their revenue from the manufacture, sale or distribution of tobacco products including cigarettes, vaping, e-cigarettes, chewing tobacco and cigars.
Alcohol production excluded
Find funds that avoid investment in companies involved in the production of alcohol. Strategies vary; some funds allow a small proportion of profits to come from this area. See fund literature for further information.
Gambling avoidance policy
Find funds that avoid companies with significant involvement in the gambling industry. Some funds may allow a small proportion of profits to come from this area. See fund policy for further details.
Pornography avoidance policy
Find funds that avoid companies that derive significant income from pornography and related areas. Strategies vary. See fund details for further information. Human Rights
Human rights policy
Find funds that have policies relating to human rights issues. Funds of this kind typically require companies to demonstrate higher standards, although some fund managers work to encourage improvements. Investee companies are often judged against internationally agreed norms or standards. Strategies vary. See fund information for further detail. Gilts & Sovereigns
Does not invest in sovereigns
Find funds that do not invest in / exclude 'sovereigns' - debt issued by governments. See eg https://www.investopedia.com/terms/s/sovereign-debt.asp Governance & Management
UN sanctions exclusion
Exclude companies that are subject to United Nations sanctions. See eg https://main.un.org/securitycouncil/en/content/un-sc-consolidated-list
Anti-bribery and corruption policy
Find funds that have policies explaining how managers will respond to assets / companies that do not comply with relevant anti-bribery and anti-corruption standards or laws. Strategies vary; options include stewardship/ engagement and divestment - or a combination. See fund literature for further information.
Encourage board diversity e.g. gender
Fund managers encourage the companies they invest in to have more diverse board structures (e.g. more women on boards)
Encourage higher ESG standards through stewardship activity
A core element of these funds will aim to encourage higher ESG standards through responsible ownership / stewardship / engagement /voting activity Fund Governance
ESG integration strategy
Find funds that factor in 'environmental, social and governance' issues as part of their investment decision making process. A focus on 'ESG' typically means a fund is carrying out additional research to help reduce ESG related risks. It does not necessarily mean a focus on sustainability. Strategies vary. See fund literature.
ESG factors included in Assessment of Value (AoV) report
Environmental, social and governance issues are part of this fund’s reporting of their ‘value’ to clients. AoV reporting is a statutory requirement. Including ESG factors in its calculation is not. Asset Size
Over 50% large cap companies
Find funds that invests more than half of their money into what are commonly regarded as 'large companies'. This will typically mean that the market capitalisation (or value) of the companies they hold is in excess of £5 to £10 billion.
Invests mostly in large cap companies / assets
Find funds that have SRI strategies and focus their investment stock selection on larger companies. (e.g. over circa £5-£10bn) How The Fund Works
Positive selection bias
Find funds that focus on finding and investing in companies with positive / beneficial attributes. This strategy can be applied in addition to exclusion criteria and engagement/stewardship activity.
Negative selection bias
Find funds where their main 'ethical approach' is to avoid companies by using negative screening criteria. Read fund literature for further information.
Single resource theme or focus
Single resource themed funds focus their investment strategy on a single natural 'resource' eg water. See fund information for further detail.
Data led strategy
Find funds that make stock selection (and ongoing fund management) decisions based on ESG data or company ratings (normally supplied by third parties) rather than focusing on what individual companies do, how they operate or their plans for the future
Significant harm exclusion
Aims to avoid companies that do significant harm. This originates from the EU’s sustainable finance ‘DNSH’ (do no significant harm) work, which is not necessarily used by UK investors.
Combines norms based exclusions with other SRI criteria
Find funds that make significant use of internationally agreed 'norms' (e.g. United Nations Global Compact - UNGC - or the UN Sustainable Development Goals - SDGs) as part of their investment selection process alongside additional SRI criteria such as positive or negative stock selection policies and/or stewardship strategies.
Combines ESG strategy with other SRI criteria
Find funds that have an ESG strategy (which is typically focused on avoiding companies that pose environmental, social or governance related risks) with additional criteria such as positive and/or negative screens, themes and stewardship strategies.
Balances company 'pros and cons' / best in sector
Find funds that consider both the 'positive' and 'negative' aspects of company behaviour and make balanced, considered decisions as part of their investment approach. May apply to a range of different issues and policy areas.
Norms focus
Find funds that use internationally agreed standards, conventions and 'norms' to help direct where the fund can and cannot invest (e.g. the UN Global Compact, UN Sustainable Development Goals). Read fund literature for further information.
Do not use stock / securities lending
This fund does not use stock lending for performance or risk purposes. Unscreened Assets & Cash
No ‘diversifiers’ used other than cash
Fund that only invest in cash to aid the practical management (buying and selling) of assets. These funds do not use additional financial instruments. Intended Clients & Product Options
Intended for investors interested in sustainability
Finds funds designed to meet the needs of individual investors with an interest in sustainability issues. Fund Management Company InformationAbout The Business
Boutique / specialist fund management company
Find fund management companies that are smaller or specialise in particular areas - notably, ideally ESG related. Strategies vary.
Responsible ownership / stewardship policy or strategy (AFM company wide)
Finds fund management companies that have a published company wide stewardship, engagement and / or responsible ownership policy or strategy that covers all investments. Stewardship typically involves encouraging higher ESG standards through voting and dialogue.
ESG / SRI engagement (AFM company wide)
Find fund management companies that actively encourage higher 'environmental, social and governance' and/or 'sustainable and responsible investment' practices across investee companies - typically where the aim is to encourage positive change that is aligned with the best interests of investors. Strategies vary. See additional information and options.
Vote all* shares at AGMs / EGMs (AFM company wide)
Find fund managers that vote all* the shares they own at Annual General Meetings and Extraordinary General Meetings. A commitment to voting shares is a key indicator of 'responsible share ownership' demonstrating their support for or disagreement with management policy. (*situations can legitimately, occasionally occur where voting proves impossible, but in principle all shares should be voted.)
Responsible ownership / ESG a key differentiator (AFM company wide)
Find fund managers that consider responsible ownership and ESG to be a key differentiator for their business.
Senior management KPIs include environmental goals (AFM company wide)
The leadership team of this asset manager have performance targets linked to environmental goals.
SDG aligned aims / objectives (AFM company wide)
Find fund management companies that aim to align all their investments (across all funds) to help meet the aims of the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
Responsible ownership policy for non SRI funds (AFM company wide)
Find funds run by fund managers that apply Responsible ownership or 'Stewardship' policies to all or most of their investment assets. This means active involvement (e.g. voting, dialogue) with the companies they invest in across funds (not normally limited to ethical or SRI options.) Read fund literature for further information.
In-house diversity improvement programme (AFM company wide)
Finds organisations / fund managers that have an in-house (company wide) diversity improvement programme - meaning that they are working to ensure that within their own businesses they employ people from diverse backgrounds - often typically focused on ethnicity and/or sex.
Diversity, equality & inclusion engagement policy (AFM company wide)
Find fund management companies that encourage the companies they invest in to have strong diversity, race, gender and other equality policies across all assets held, not simply screened or themed SRI/ESG funds. (ie Asset Management company wide).
Offer structured intermediary training on sustainable investment
Fund management entity offers unstructured intermediary training on sustainable investment (ie for financial advisers and wealth managers)
Offer unstructured intermediary sustainable investment training
Fund management entity offers unstructured intermediary training on sustainable investment (ie for financial advisers and wealth managers) Collaborations & Affiliations
PRI signatory
Find fund management companies that have signed up to the UN backed 'Principles of Responsible Investment'.
Investment Association (IA) member
Fund management entity is a member of the Investment Association https://www.theia.org/ Resources
In-house responsible ownership / voting expertise
Find fund management companies that employ people to steer and support fund managers in voting shares at company AGM's and EGMs in ways that are consistent with encouraging higher ESG/sustainability standards.
Employ specialist ESG / SRI / sustainability researchers
Find a fund management company that directly employs specialist ESG/SRI/sustainability researchers or analysts. This allows asset managers to discuss environmental, social and governance risks and opportunities directly with companies.
Use specialist ESG / SRI / sustainability research companies
Find fund management companies that makes use of expert external research companies. This can help deliver specialist expertise and means resources are pooled with other investors. Accreditations
PRI A+ rated (AFM company wide)
Finds organisations / fund managers that have an A+ PRI rating - meaning they are highly rated according to the 'Principles of Responsible Investment'
UK Stewardship Code signatory (AFM company wide)
Find fund managers that are signatories to the FRC UK Stewardship Code, which sets out a framework for constructive investor / investee relations where fund managers are encouraged to behave like responsible, typically longer term 'company owners'. Engagement Approach
Regularly lead collaborative ESG initiatives (AFM company wide)
Find fund management companies that regularly initiate or run industry wide (collaborative) investor projects aimed at raising environmental, social and governance standards amongst investee companies.
Encourage responsible corporate taxation (AFM company wide)
Find fund management companies that are working with the companies they invest in to encourage more responsible corporate taxation.
Engaging on climate change issues
Fund manager has stewardship /responsible ownership strategy that is focused on addressing climate change with investee assets.
Engaging with fossil fuel companies on climate change
Asset manager has a stewardship /responsible ownership strategy that involves working with fossil fuel companies on climate change related issues. See fund manager website for details.
Engaging to reduce plastics pollution / waste
Asset manager has stewardship /responsible ownership strategy with involves encouraging investee asset to reduce plastic waste and pollution.
Engaging on biodiversity / nature issues
The asset manager has a responsible ownership / stewardship strategy that focuses on biodiversity and nature issues relating to the assets they invest the aim of which will be to reduce harm and or deliver improvement. Strategies vary. https://tnfd.global
Engaging on human rights issues
Asset manager has responsible ownership / stewardship strategy in place which aims to address human rights issues in investee companies (and potentially their suppliers) with the aim of raising standards
Engaging on labour / employment issues
Asset manager has responsible ownership / stewardship strategy in place that aims to improve labour standards for the benefit of employees in investee companies (and potentially their suppliers)
Engaging on diversity, equality and / or inclusion issues
Asset management company has a stewardship strategy in place which involves working to raise diversity, equality and inclusion standards across investee assets
Engaging to stop modern slavery
working with the assets they hold to help stamp out modern slavery - where direct or indirect company employees are exploited for business benefits.
Engaging on governance issues
Fund managers have stewardship strategies in place that focus on improving governance standards across investee assets
Engaging on responsible supply chain issues
Has a stewardship / responsible ownership strategy that encourages responsible supply chain - ie the managers will discuss environmental, social and governance issues with investee companies with the aim of raising standards Company Wide Exclusions
Controversial weapons avoidance policy (AFM company wide)
Find fund management companies (not funds) that avoid investment in 'controversial weapons' across all of their funds and other investment vehicles.
Fossil fuel exclusion policy (AFM company wide)
Find fund management companies that avoid investment in fossil fuel companies (e.g. coal, oil and gas) across all of their funds. (and/ or other assets.)
Coal exclusion policy (group wide coal mining exclusion policy)
This asset manager excludes direct investment in the coal mining industry. Managers ability to do this may depend on the geographic regions in which they invest. Climate & Net Zero Transition
Net Zero commitment (AFM company wide)
Fund management organisations that have pledged to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions to ‘net zero’. Strategies vary - this area is changing rapidly.
Voting policy includes net zero targets (AFM company wide)
Fund manager AGM / EGM voting strategy has processes in place that mean they will normally be expected to vote in a way that will encourage the transition to net zero greenhouse gas emissions.
Publish 'CEO owned' Climate Risk policy (AFM company wide)
Find fund management companies that have published a Climate Risk policy or statement that is signed / owned by their Chief Executive.
Net Zero - have set a Net Zero target date (AFM company wide)
This asset management company has set a date by which they plan to achieve net zero greenhouse gas / CO2e emissions.
Encourage carbon / greenhouse gas reduction (AFM company wide)
Find fund management companies that are working with the companies they invest in to encourage reductions in carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emissions.
‘Forward Looking Climate Metrics’ published / ITR (AFM company wide)
Finds organisations / fund managers that have published ‘forward looking climate metrics’ e.g. 'implied temperature rise' data that are a total of the asset management company's share (% owned) of all the investee company emissions of the assets they manage, as well as their own direct and other indirect emissions.
In-house carbon / GHG reduction policy (AFM company wide)
Find fund management companies that are working to reduce their own (fund management company) carbon/greenhouse gas emissions.
Working towards a ‘Net Zero’ commitment (AFM company wide)
Finds organisations / fund management companies that are in the process of working out how to make a ‘net zero commitment’ - meaning that when that is finalised they will have started the process of reducing their total greenhouse gas emissions to'zero'. Transparency
Publish responsible ownership / stewardship report (AFM company wide)
Find fund management companies that publish a report detailing their responsible investment ownership - also known as 'Stewardship' - activity.
Full SRI / responsible ownership policy information on company website
Find companies that publish information about their sustainable and responsible investment strategies on their company website.
Publish full voting record (AFM company wide)
Fund management companies that publish a full record of how they vote their shares at AGMs (annual general meetings) and EGMs (extraordinary general meetings). Voting strategies have an important role to play encouraging higher environmental, social and governance standards.
Paris Alignment plan publicly available (AFM company wide)
This asset management company has published a plan that explains how they will align to the climate change commitments made at the Paris Climate Talks, COP21.
Net Zero transition plan publicly available (AFM company wide)
This asset management company has published a plan that explains how they are going to achieve net zero greenhouse gas / CO2e emissions.
Dialshifter statement
Find fund management companies that have supplied Dialshifter information. See Dialshifter tab within record for more information. Sustainable, Responsible &/or ESG Policy:The fund is a unique global equity thematic solution that promotes Diversity & Inclusion (D&I) as drivers for social change. The portfolio’s investment process has been designed to add a data-driven overlay to enhance what is already a robust fundamental & bottom-up thematic investment approach. In terms of corporate level exclusions and as part of our comprehensive Responsible Investing (RI) Framework, the fund is subject to an ongoing norms-based screening process, used to identify listed companies allegedly involved in breaches of, or controversies around, international law, and norms on environmental protection, human rights, labour standards and anticorruption. Examples of such norms and standards include the UN Global Compact and the OECD Guidelines for Multinationals. If a company is identified in this screening process, an internal assessment of the norms breach is initiated. The assessment is conducted by the Responsible Investment team, which provides a recommendation to the Responsible Investment Committee (RIC). Typical actions which the RIC decides on include engagement, quarantine or exclusion. The policy also defines our positions on sectors that are linked to material ESG issues, going beyond the international norms and conventions. This helps ensuring that the companies we are invested in meet our expectations of sound ESG performance, including clear positions regarding the operation of our investee companies in line with our commitment to the PRI and in observance of existing laws and regulations, as well as standards for sound environmental, social and governance performance. The positions are regarding illegal and nuclear weapons, certain fossil fuels and natural resources, climate change, corruption, human rights, water management, business activities in conflict areas, investments in countries under international sanctions and pornography. Our RI policy covers all of our actively managed strategies and is publicly available on our website: https://www.nordeaassetmanagement.com/responsible-investment Nordea maintains a list of companies that are excluded from our entire actively managed fund range, either due to our corporate wide exclusion limits or for reasons specific to the individual company. Any addition to – or removal from – the list is decided by the RIC. Our continuously updated exclusion list available in the following link: https://www.nordea.com/en/sustainability/exclusion Moreover, in terms of ESG standards, the fund does not invest in companies involved in serious violations of widely accepted corporate behaviour, certain controversial business activities and extended ESG risks:
Additionally, the fund is classified as Article 8 according to the Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR). The fund doesn’t have a sustainable investment objective however, it promotes Environmental(E)/Social(S) characteristics and while it does not have as its objective a sustainable investment, it will have a minimum proportion of 50% of sustainable investments with a social objective. The Social characteristics promoted include the following features: Minimum proportion of sustainable investments: The fund promotes E/S characteristics by partially investing in companies and issuers involved in activities that contribute to an environmental or social objective as outlined in UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and/or the EU Taxonomy, while not significantly harming any other environmental or social objectives and following good governance practices. Promoting diversity: The fund promotes E/S characteristics by focusing on companies that meet the investment manager's expectations on diversity or are working actively to improve in one or several diversity areas. The data that is currently available is predominantly related to gender equality and gender diversity. As data quality and availability evolve, the strategy may gradually be able to formally adopt a broader range of diversity indicators such as ethnicity, age and socioeconomic status. ESG scoring: The fund promotes E/S characteristics by investing in companies or issuers with favourable ESG scores. Investee companies or issuers have been analysed and scored by NAM or by an external provider to ensure that only securities issued by companies that meet the minimum required ESG score are eligible for inclusion and that ESG laggards are excluded. Sector- and value-based exclusions: The fund promotes E/S characteristics by excluding companies that are deemed to be inappropriate based on their business activities or corporate behaviour. NAM’s Paris-Aligned Fossil Fuel Policy: The fund promotes E/S characteristics by refraining from investing in companies that have significant exposure to fossil fuels unless they have a credible transition strategy. There is no reference benchmark designated for the purpose of attaining the E/S characteristics of the fund. Process:The Global Diversity Engagement Fund investment process utilizes both quantitative and qualitative assessments to select the desired portfolio. We look for companies which are promoting gender diversity and implementing concrete measures; but at the same time present strong business fundamentals and growth outlooks.
Our opportunity set is made of sustainable companies displaying a certain level of gender diversity representation at higher management levels. This consists of around 3,000 companies which are screened based on the following criteria: Minimum Diversity Standards:
These secure that our investment candidates have a minimum degree of gender diversity in upper management levels; yet we also allow for upcoming gender diverse companies to enter our universe, as they are actively working to increase gender diversity. Generally, gender diversity is important throughout the organization. However, as companies undergo a cultural change, research shows that a commitment is needed from the top in order to succeed: which is our reason for focusing on the upper level management at this step. ESG standards: We do not invest in companies involved in serious violations of widely accepted corporate behaviour, certain controversial business activities and extended ESG risks:
Screening based on liquidity allows us to avoid companies too illiquid for our portfolio. This step filters away companies with less than USD 2m in average daily trade. Moreover, the team also screens out companies that are not regularly covered by sell-side analysts. This filter is applied as some of the quantitative models used later on in the process require earnings estimates to measure the fundamental strength and momentum of the given companies. This leaves us with around 2,000 companies, which also shows that not only large cap names qualify in our universe.
With a strong investment case, we think gender diversity pairs well with known return-drivers. Therefore, we apply our quantitative stock screening tool to have a first selection in terms of quantitative assessment. The team uses a proprietary bottom-up quantitative model to rank individual stocks across each segment. The main inputs into the model are fundamental factors that have proven to be indicative of future excess return in rigorous back testing and confirmed with live implementation. The model screens on a selection items:
The combined weight of Value and Quality must be at least 50% in each segment, and Value and Quality have a minimum weight of 5% each. For the remaining risk premia, the weights can vary since not all segments are alike and we continuously test and adapt them, based on historical performances. Within a subset of comparable companies, we rank each company according to their fundamentals:
In this step, we screen away 75% of the companies, only keeping the companies ranking in the best quartile within each segment. This leaves us with around 500 companies: a very effective way for us to focus our energy on the companies ranking in the top of their peer groups.
In the qualitative assessment, we analyze closely the remaining companies. We believe that it is an essential component, as it ensures that the assumptions behind the quantitative models are valid and give us the opportunity to dedicate our time to understand and select the companies which will enter the portfolio. All these components go into our final estimation of the company. We look closer at the companies, their business and their fundamentals. Why did the company ended up in the best quartile of its segment? What are the risks and what are the opportunities for this company? Generally, we favor companies presenting strong business fundamentals and growth outlook. As part of this analysis, we look at factors such as:
The qualitative analysis includes the fundamental ESG integration, and more specifically on gender diversity matters. The aim is to avoid companies that are likely to face headwinds driven by rapidly evolving regulatory, environmental, demographic or technological trends. We leverage on Nordea internal research and actively use proprietary ESG information to get a better understanding of the opportunities and difficulties the companies are facing in regards to ESG risks. For this, we have created a proprietary D&I score to support a structured approach in assessing the level of diversity throughout a company. The score is based on different factors such as:
The focus here is on the level of gender diversity not only in top management levels but also in in middle management. Several aspects are of particular interest: e.g. diversity in general within the workforce (does the company reports on it? We calculate the diversity in the workforce for that segment based on the companies that give out the data), diversity in different managerial levels compared to the diversity in the workforce (are companies successful in promoting and developing all their talents?), the development in gender diversity in upper level management over the past years along with gender policies in place (is the company promoting and succeeding in implementing gender diversity?). More than just a score, this approach allows us to have a comprehensive understanding on the current company gender diversity policy and progresses. Furthermore, the gender diversity raw score is uniformed within each segments to allow for comparison.
The portfolio construction process combines the stock selection process with a risk-budgeting framework. Specific weights are assessed based on the conviction in the company and the overall risk consideration. Please note that the fund does not have an official reference index; however for risk management purposes, we use the MSCI All Country World index as an internal benchmark. We aim to be fairly region and sector neutral relative to the market and we therefore focus on picking the best companies within each segment. Yet, it is harder to find companies in certain sectors/countries (e.g. Japan, Emerging markets, Communication Services) that live up to our gender diversity standards. This is the reason why we tend to have an underweight in these regions/sectors. We therefore have the flexibility to add opportunities from other regions/specific sector. Generally our largest active weights when comparing the portfolio to the MSCI All Country World index is below 3%. It’s fair to say that the largest part of the portfolio’s active risk and return, should come from security selection and not sector/regional allocation. Moreover, the security selection will be mainly driven by our multi-factor models, our D&I standards and our fundamental preferences.
Resources, Affiliations & Corporate Strategies:Our RI efforts, in particular our ESG integration and engagement activities, are supported by Nordea Asset Management’s in-house Responsible Investments team (“RI team”). Formed in 2009, Nordea’s RI team is one of the most highly-regarded in Europe in terms of pure ESG analysts. It is composed of 25 analysts, who work closely with their respective portfolio management teams in Copenhagen, Stockholm, Oslo and Singapore. The team maintains both a broad coverage and a particular focus on ESG-enhanced strategies (i.e. the ESG STARS and sustainable thematic strategies), working closely with the respective investment teams. The team carries out its various functions in four clusters:
Additionally, Participating in investor initiatives is a way for us to exchange knowledge, shape the sustainable finance industry and to benchmark and develop our own ESG approach and framework. During 2023, Nordea Asset Management (“NAM”) was active in 37 investor initiatives across a broad range of ESG topics. We were also active in several Sustainable Investment Forums (SIFs) around Europe, and participated in numerous engagements in collaboration with other investors. Some of the initiatives we are currently participants of are: Climate Action 100+, Net Zero Asset Managers Initiative, Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI), UN Global Compact, among others.
Voting RecordDisclaimer1 There can be no warranty that an investment objective, targeted returns and results of an investment structure is achieved. The value of your investment can go up and down, and you could lose some or all of your invested money. |