RI’s #knowthePRIscore update: Leading global firms have submitted their scores

#knowthePRIscore

Last week, Responsible Investor invited asset manager signatories to the Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) to contribute their 2018 Strategy and Governance scores to us. We want to use them to build something useful for the entire market and we needed your help.
A week on, and we are pleased with the response so far: some of the world’s leading asset managers have contributed their scores, from major players to smaller boutiques. The names include not just SRI firms but leading household name firms too.

We would like to thank all those who have supported our project, especially during vacation season, and we welcome all additional contributions in the week or so remaining (please send us your scores by Friday September 7). The more asset managers contribute, the more useful this exercise will be, as a standardised assessment methodology by the PRI provides the opportunity for an ‘apple-to-apple’ comparison of asset managers.

Inevitably, there have been some queries about this initiative, so here is an FAQ that we hope will address the questions we’ve received:

1) Will my firm’s scores be displayed on the RI website?

Yes, we will collate them and they will available to subscribers. Analysis of the assessment score data on a range of asset manager categories is presently available on the PRI website — though in an anonymised form.

2) The PRI guidelines state that scores should not be disclosed “out of context”. Is #knowthePRIscore in violation of these guidelines?

The PRI guidelines seek to avoid instances of ambiguity and confusion (e.g. selectively reporting favourable module scores while omitting the rest). To prevent this, we are only requesting the scores of the Strategy & Governance module, which already seem to be used – unofficially – as an overall indicator for the assessment by the market.To eliminate any possibility of ambiguity however, we welcome the submission of Assessment Reports which can be attached to your emails. We will also make clear to our readership that the Transparency Reports for all signatories are available on the PRI website to reference all publicly available submissions in addition to the comprehensive scoring methodology.

3) Would I be able to rescind my firm’s submitted scores to avoid publication?

Yes, of course, although this question cuts to the heart of the project. We do not intend to in any way to “penalise” lower-band signatories, nor are we aiming to “praise” higher-band signatories. At this stage, #knowthePRIscore is concerned primarily with disclosure, rather than the scores themselves.

4) I’d like to submit our scores but my Compliance Department has a problem with it.
Remind them that the six Principles for Responsible Investment are a “voluntary and aspirational” set of investment principles that offer a menu of possible actions for incorporating ESG issues into investment.

• Dennis Fritsch, Researcher, Responsible Investor, adds: For the #knowthePRIscore project, we aim to create a comprehensive cohort including all major asset managers globally. Initially we are focusing on the PRI Strategy & Governance scores, as we consider these to be the most comparable across signatories of different size and location. In order for this project to be decision-useful for the entire market, we will design a database collating all scores sent to Responsible Investor or publicly available and will leave blank those organisations who chose not to disclose their score or who are not PRI signatories. This will enable anyone to gain an overview of the responsible investing actions taken within the current asset manager landscape, while promoting transparency across the PRI signatory base.