During this past proxy season, many companies made significant changes in the way that they disclosed information about their board diversity-related policies and considerations. The recent policy survey results from Glass Lewis about how investors view board diversity is interesting. Among other tidbits, it was reported that:
- Investors described taking a contextual, holistic approach, with some noting that they had moved away from employing specific thresholds.
- When asked about the relevance of specific areas of diversity, background, skills and experience was the most common response among both investors and non-investors, followed by gender.
- There was a notable geographical split among investors, with U.S. based respondents far more likely to ignore diversity factors (42%) compared to investors from other regions (6%).
- When assessing proxy disclosures relating to board diversity and skills, 82% of investors expect information on the board’s approach to considering diversity in director nominations – and 88% expect board skills disclosure.
- Only 35% of investors expect disclosure about the board’s current percentage of racial/ethnic diversity – and only 35% expect disclosure about whether the board employs the ‘Rooney Rule.’
