academic developments in responsible investing (ri ) prof suzette viviers department of business...
TRANSCRIPT
Academic developments in responsible investing (RI )
Prof Suzette Viviers Department of Business Management
Stellenbosch [email protected]
Structure of the presentation
Introduction
Trends in international RI research (1975 – 2009)
Prominent research themes (2009+)
RI research in South Africa
Conclusions
Introduction
The purpose of research…• reviewing, reflecting on and synthesising
existing knowledge;• investigating some existing situation or
problem;• providing solutions to a problem;• exploring and analysing more general issues;• constructing or creating new procedures or
systems;• explaining new phenomena; and• generating new knowledge and theories.
Trends in international RI research
Viviers and Eccles conducted a review of 190 academic articles on RI from 1975 – 20091 & 2
• Primary name of the phenomenon: Socially responsible investing (SRI)
• Research themes: Financial performance, fiduciary duty and legal aspects of RI
• Ethical foundations: Predominantly utilitarian i.e. the greatest good for the greatest number; increased mention of ethical egoism (self-interest) in later periods
• RI strategies: Negative screening, positive screening and shareholder activism
• Gaps in the RI literature: RI in emerging markets
Trends in international RI research
Since 2009 the number of academic articles on RI and ESG related topics has grown exponentially• Special edition in the Journal of Business Ethics• Journal of Sustainable Finance and Investment• International journals dedicated to corporate
governance, sustainability, behavioural finance etc.
Explosion of non-academic publications on the topic
Prominent research themes (2009+)
Nature and extent of shareholder activism3 - 10
• Factors that impede / support successful activism
• Hedge funds, NGOs, trade unions
Financial performance11 - 18
• Cross-country studies / best practices in financial research
• Studies on fixed-income and Shari’ah instruments
Fiduciary duty and legal aspects of RI19 - 21
Private investors22 - 24
• Motives to invest in a responsible manner • Decision making models
Prominent research themes (2009+)
ESG criteria25 - 33
• Relative importance of individual screens • Impact of individual screens on financial
performance• Problems experienced when attempting to
integrate ESG considerations
Sustainability indices34
• Composition and financial performance
A critique of “business case RI”35 - 38
Sustainable property investments39 & 40
RI in emerging markets41 - 43
RI research in South Africa
An increase in the number of researchers and topics covered (current projects indicated with a *)• Definition and nature of RI in South Africa44 - 48
• Drivers, barriers and enablers of RI in South Africa49 & 50
• Financial performance51 *
• Legal/ethical considerations52 - 54
• FTSE/JSE SRI index55 *
• ESG criteria in the South African context56 & 57 *
• CSR / ESG / Integrated reporting58 – 70 *
• Impact investing71
• Shareholder activism*
Conclusions
King Solomon (Ecclesiastes 1) and Bon Jovi agree - the more things change, the more they stay the same• There is nothing new about RI…
We are drowning in information, yet thirst for knowledge• Researchers should focus less on “what is” and
more on “what ought to be” • They should also focus less on the “business
case” for RI and more on the “ethical case” for RI
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