The Responsible Investment Association of Australasia (RIAA) surveyed 53 of Australia's largest super funds for the RIAA Super Fund Responsible Investment Benchmark Report 2018. With 81% of funds showing a commitment to responsible investment (RI), and the doubling of appointments of RI employees, it shows some healthy trends since the last survey in 2016. However, there is need for improvement, with just 10 funds identifying climate change risk as a key consideration in strategic asset allocation and only six funds showing activity in impact or community investing. Industry Moves asks Simon O'Connor, chief executive officer of RIAA to tell us a little more about the findings and how the association is working with its members to refine and articulate standards of approach to RI.
Environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors are being recognised in global fixed income investing as value-added indicators of potential economic performance. Templeton Global Macro CIO Michael Hasenstab examines ESG factors in investing and how they speak to an economy’s potential as an investment destination.
Rachel Alembakis of The Sustainability Report talks to David Brown, national human capital leader at Deloitte, about the results of the seventh annual Millennial Survey. The findings, based on the views of more than 10,000 millennials questioned across 36 countries, show Australian millennials' opinions of business' motivation and ethics dropping to the lowest level since 2014. We find out why, for some businesses, that's good news.
At last week’s Women In Super (WIS) lunch in Sydney, 150 industry professionals were lucky enough to hear philanthropic innovator Audette Exel deliver an inspiring speech. They also heard the announcement of this year’s WIS and AGSM @ UNSW Business School scholarship winners. We highlight the recipients below and find out a little more about what the AGSM programs offer the industry.
In the lead-up to the World Business Forum, Industry Moves talks to featured speaker and expert behavioural scientist, Kelly Peters. Having had the “privilege and luxury” of being at the forefront of innovation throughout her career, Kelly tells us how businesses, armed with powerful insights, can effectively tackle complex challenges, and encourages us to unleash our inner scientist. We also hear about her research around investors’ appetite for risk, her favourite innovation project, and her search for Australian ‘mavericks’ that are eager to disrupt the industry using science.
What do workplace negotiations and family dinner chats have in common? Listening – they are both transactions after all. But what does it take to really listen? This week we draw on the experience of Industry professionals from our weekly Q&A series who say that ‘to listen more’ is the best advice they have received. We also bring you five steps from an acknowledged expert in the art of listening.
Who are the people that most influence our careers? Over the months, Industry Moves has learned of some outstanding people who have provided inspiration and encouragement to many in our industry. This week, we highlight some of these influencers - including those who are well known, those who are no longer with us, and two very impressive women who, unsurprisingly, received more than one mention.
In five years, the number of investment products on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) has grown from 153, to now number over 500. We spoke to senior manager, distribution and product development at the ASX, Rory Cunningham, and ASX ETP product and business development manager, Charmaine Breadon about developments in this space.
In the lead-up to the World Business Forum, Industry Moves talks to featured speaker and academic director of Executive MBA programs at the Melbourne Business School, Vivek Chaudhri, who shares his insights into Australia’s banking and finance industry. He tells us why ‘business as usual’ is no longer going to cut it for Australia’s banks, shares his key pieces of “bleedingly obvious” advice for senior leaders and tells us why we should do away with traditional benchmarking methods.
Over the last few months, as part of our regular Q&As, we have asked some of Australia’s leading investment professionals to share their most memorable investments - the good ones and the bad. In a showcase of responses, we find out those they are most proud of, those that would have benefitted from the power of hindsight, and why sometimes it’s the simple investments that do the best.
In the lead-up to the World Business Forum, Industry Moves talks to featured speaker and futurist, Shara Evans, who takes us on a journey into the future of technology. We find out about advancements that will not only affect the workplace of the future, but also what it means to be human. Shara tells us that she believes we have already lost the battle when it comes to maintaining online privacy and that much of what we see in sci-fi films will become a reality within the next 5-10 years. From automation of the workforce, to digital immortality, this Q&A will both fascinate and terrify you.
Of the 221 appointments Industry Moves reported on in the first quarter of 2018, just 56 (25%) were awarded to women. When broken down into executive and board appointments, there's a whole different story, with 48% of board appointments going to women, compared to just 22% of executive roles. So, while we are seeing a distinct improvement in gender diversity on boards, there seems to be a decline in the number of women who are landing the industry's leading roles.
There is a huge waiting list of people seeking social housing in Australia and with evidence showing that impact investing in this space can reap reasonable rewards, we ask managing director of Affordable Housing Australia, Michael Kerans to bring us up to date with the current state of play.
With the Banking Royal Commission now underway, the superannuation industry will also find itself in the spotlight. Independence on boards is likely to be on the agenda, once again. This week we take a look at 10 of the largest profit-for-member funds in Australia - who invest $500 billion of their members' funds - compare their current number of directors, and drill down to find out a little more about the 16 independent directors appointed so far.
How do you service 400,000 members, across 37 different university campuses, with financial advice? UniSuper’s executive manager, advice and employer relationships, Jack McCartney, tells us about the $65 billion super fund’s in-house financial advice offering.
Today marks the 104th International Women's Day, a day where we celebrate the social, political, cultural and economic achievements of women across the world, while also highlighting the significant inequalities they face. As passionate supporters of the cause, we spoke to some influential women in the financial services industry and asked them to pay tribute to the women in their lives who have made a difference.
Social Ventures Australia (SVA) is at the forefront of impact investing in Australia. In partnership with Uniting, it was integral in getting the first social impact bond – the Newpin Social Benefit Bond – off the ground and continues to be involved in developing impact investing products across Australia.
Whether you're working as part of a large organisation or running your own show, it can be difficult to stay on top of both your professional and personal worlds and find that sweet spot we like to call 'balance'.
At the Women In Super (WIS) luncheon with investment leader and philanthropist Chris Cuffe last week, it was announced that WIS, in partnership with the Australian Graduate School of Management (AGSM) @ UNSW Business School, will continue its scholarship program, with all WIS members eligible to apply for the AGSM's Executive Education Short Courses to further their learning and leadership capabilities.
Finance industry leaders are among the many top executives preparing to participate in the OzHarvest CEO CookOff, to be held on Monday 19 March at Sydney’s Royal Hall of Industries. Egged on by their friends and colleagues in the form of sponsorship dollars, they will work alongside some of Australia's most talented chefs, to serve a gourmet feast to more than a thousand of the city's most vulnerable people.
