GLOBAL – Asset manager F&C supported only 54% of management remuneration resolutions in 2012, a fall of 14% on the previous year, in its efforts to improve corporate governance performances of boards and management.

Overall, the company voted against 23% of all management proposals in 2012 but supported 75% of them, compared with a 76% backing in 2011.

F&C also voted against 61% of resolutions in Japan, reflecting its concerns about insider boards and non-independent audit committees.

George Dallas, director of corporate governance, said: "In 2012, we have seen the investor responsibility debate reach new levels of maturity – showing the balance of power is shifting between investors and management at major companies.

"The occurrence of significant votes against management demonstrated investors are now willing to use their vote to object to governance practices or pay plans that fail to incentivise executives to improve corporate risk management and performance.

"Ethics has to be a business imperative, not just a nice thing to do."

Dallas said this needed to be integrated through a bottom up as well as a top-down approach.

The companies where F&C voted against included UK bank Barclays, US Citigroup, French retailer Carrefour and Irish media company WPP.

Ethical conduct in the banking sector was one of the priorities for F&C last year, as were commodity prices and food security.

Among its engagements was Foxconn, a subsidiary of Taiwan-listed Hon Hai Precision Industry, which is a key supplier of electronic components to Apple.

For 2013, the investment manager will focus on labour standards and human rights, public health and food, extractives and energy – including the new issue of water risk in the utilities sector – carbon management and breaches of the UN Global Compact initiatives.

It also aims to scrutinise governance in the banking sector, introduce model clawback language into remuneration policies in the pharmaceuticals sector, address board diversity in the UK, target board effectiveness in Brazil, France, Germany, Italy and Japan and focus on listing standards in the UK, investor access to supervisory board members in Germany and executive director elections in South Africa.

The company has also launched an ESG risk tool, which aims to capture risks faced by companies based on their own policies and performance, as well as sector and country-related risks.

In 2012, F&C engaged 909 companies across 47 countries on various ESG issues and exercised voting rights at 6,188 company meetings.

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