Investing in positive change: ACT turns one year old
It's hard to believe it's been a year since we launched the ACT Framework and Standard, and what a year it's been!
We are proud to say that we now have close to 100 firms reporting on the Framework, all ranging in size, location and outlook, sharing disclosures that help us see the industry in a way not previously possible. That's also 100 firms committed to taking the necessary action to positively change the culture of our industry.
The letters 'ACT' stand for Action, Challenge and Transparency, and that's exactly what we aimed for when we developed the ACT Framework and Standard. We recognised the importance of creating a positive culture of inclusion in the investment industry to promote sustainable growth and tangible outcomes for clients.
As more and more investment companies are playing a role in shaping an equitable and sustainable society, it's becoming increasingly important for stakeholders to see that wealth and value creation is in responsible hands and with their best interests at the fore.
The UK's new Consumer Duty is about to come into effect, making this topic more pertinent than ever. The FCA has been clear that the Duty will require a 'significant shift' change in firms' culture to ensure that the 'interests of customers are central to their culture and purpose'. We believe that a firm's culture and values are central to understanding how it will deliver on its real-world commitments.
Previously, there had been little guidance for investment companies on how they should begin the journey of understanding, creating, and progressing cultural change.
But with the ACT Framework, we have created a standardised disclosure framework across nine areas of culture and internal stewardship, enabling investment companies to understand and implement the changes needed and to communicate progress effectively via our reporting framework.
We partnered with the due diligence platform Door to provide free access to its platform for any asset managers wanting to complete the framework.
This creates one set of disclosures that can meet multiple disclosure needs, helping to easily disseminate information across clients.
Reporting and disclosure are being driven by requests from the fund analysis and buying community, which remains laser-focused on access to information that will inform improved analysis and decision-making.
The ACT framework is enabling firms to talk about their commitments to important existing initiatives that aim to increase diversity and inclusion through particular lenses, such as the Women in Finance Charter, Race at Work Charter, or Disability Confident in the UK, the incoming requirements for board diversity across the EU, or in the US compliance with Nasdaq board diversity rules or signing up to the Disability Equality Index.
If you are an asset manager, the ACT Framework is a clear way of looking at the whole business to ensure there is a joined-up set of thinking. It also ensures actions and appropriate oversight and monitoring, which will help to create and maintain a good culture.
Firms are now articulating, assessing, and demonstrating how their external and internal cultural values on diversity, equity, and inclusion align, using the ACT framework. If you are a fund buyer, wealth manager, or asset owner, now’s the time to join us and gain access to the data from firms already reporting.
Changing your firm's culture is no longer a choice - it's expected of you. The ACT Framework is a powerful tool that can help future proof your firm by embedding and living its core values within your organisation, let us guide you through the process. The sooner more people join us, the sooner we can collectively create real changes to D&I and internal culture in the Investment industry.
Together, we can build a better future for our industry. To learn more about the ACT Standard and Framework and how it can help your firm, please email hq@cityhive.co.uk.