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The Launch of “Tomorrow’s Owners - Defining, Differentiating and Rewarding Stewardship” Briefing Report
“Tomorrow’s Owners - Defining, Differentiating and Rewarding Stewardship” is published in the run-up to Sir David Walker’s report on the governance of banks and financial institutions. It builds on the first Tomorrow’s Owners report published in October 2008, which described changing ownership patterns and warned of the dangers from the erosion of stewardship by major shareholders.
It charts the combined steps needed from government, pension funds, asset managers and boards if the exercise of stewardship is to be reasserted.
Why we need to go further than Walker and the ISC Code explains Tomorrow’s Company Founder Director, Mark Goyder: “The Walker Report, and the new Institutional Shareholders Committee Code may provide the first steps in putting stewardship back on the map, and they do draw attention to the need for shareholders to work together. But we need to be more radical if are to have real impact on the problem of ‘ownerless corporations’ identified by Lord Myners.
“It is one thing for shareholders to engage occasionally with companies when things are going wrong.
“We need more. We need a continuing conversation between shareholders and boards, focusing on the four principles. Has the board set a clear course for the company? Is the company operating as effectively as it could? Do board and investors understand threats and opportunities in the wider world around them? And are they investing in the talent and the brand and the technology and the relationships that will underpin tomorrow’s success?
“The next step is for government to require pension fund trustees and fund managers to state their policy on stewardship and for the industry to develop kite marks and scorecards to reward those who practice stewardship.” Tomorrow’s Company has developed four principles from the experience of stewardship at work in the worlds of family business, private equity, employee owned businesses and institutional investment.
The Tomorrow’s Company Stewardship Principles are drawn from the experience of stewardship at work in the worlds of family business, private equity, employee owned businesses and institutional investment. The four principles are entitled
- Setting the Course - Driving Performance - Part of the Landscape - Planting for the Future The principles are accompanied by a series of questions for boards and investors which will eventually provide the basis for a stewardship scorecard. High performers could be identified, and ultimately rewarded through kite marks, and quality rankings.
Graduate Volunteer role at Tomorrow's Company Gain valuable work experience at Tomorrow's Company (TC), a leading ‘think’ and ‘do’ tank which focuses on the relationship between business and society. Tomorrows Company is a research and charity education which publishes research and brings practical business people together to generate and share ideas with the view of influencing decision makers in companies, stakeholders groups and government Successful candidates will gain the invaluable experience in areas like corporate governance, sustainability, climate change and many others; while in the same time working in an exciting and challenging think tank environment. Tomorrow's Company is a registered charity and a company limited by guarantee. We are a membership organization, so have strong links with our own member corporations but also with other NGO's and think- tanks. So it is an ideal place to get an overall view of the think-tank/Sustainability/Policy arena. We describe ourselves as a ‘think’ and ‘do’ tank because we deal not only in ideas but in their implementation, working with companies as they put new thinking into practice. Every piece of work we do is grounded in the reality of business and tested against the prospects for its execution. We work across the globe with leaders of businesses and other organizations. We push the boundaries of thinking on issues that are critical to the future of business. And we then work with businesses to help them implement new ideas, learn and pursue sustainable futures. Our Vision is to create value with our partners by building a mutually reinforcing link between ideas and implementation – between theory and practice. In so doing, we achieve our purpose of pushing the boundaries of thought leadership and business behavior. Some of the tasks you will be responsible for include: · Supporting project-based research: Tomorrow’s Company is engaged in pioneering research into the issues that emerge from the relationship between business and society. You will have the opportunity to be a part of the success of such research projects, at all stages: brainstorming and idea generation, literature reviews, desk-based research, statistical analysis, Google searches, interviews and roundtables, to final drafting, printing and implementation.
· Drafting reports and shorter briefing papers: Volunteers draft and co-write briefings on specific topics; which are often circulated amongst our member companies. · Managing project-related events: Tomorrows Company is supported by successful and influential companies and financial institutions in the UK and internationally, who recognize the importance of our work. Much of Tomorrow’s Company’s unique credibility, comes from our ability to facilitate the voice of enlightened-business so our research Volunteers design and support a range of project-related events and activities, outside the office everything from one-to-one interviews, consultations roundtables, up to larger report launches and press briefings · Administrative tasks: Volunteers are expected to help with the day-to-day working of the office, assisting with such basic tasks as updating the database, mail-outs, answering the phone, taking notes etc. These tasks are shared between all volunteers. Equally beneficial are the numerous networking opportunities you have as an intern for TC. We encourage our volunteers to pursue their own career goals while at Tomorrow’s Company by 'shadowing' members of the team as they attend client meetings and events. As a membership organization, with a broad network, you will also have a chance to meet some of our high-profile business members and sponsors. Volunteers Tomorrow’s Company volunteers come from both London and overseas, and belong to a diverse range of backgrounds, looking to obtain a valuable work experience or looking for a change in career direction. We have between four to six volunteers at any one time, working alongside our full time staff. We deeply value their work as a driving force of our success and as such we offer an encouraging team environment where volunteers are challenged to take on new roles and learn new skills which will be of use when they seek jobs in our industry. Volunteer roles will usually last for three to six months; volunteer roles are full-time (Monday-Friday, 9am-5:30pm) but hours can be flexible and we also offer part-time volunteer roles. Process If you share our vision and values and are keen to work hard, send your CV and cover letter - telling us about your interests and why you want to join Tomorrow’s Company. Please include the period you are available for, and if you are pursuing a part-time or full-time volunteer. Please send your e-mail to: Gerard@tomorrowscompany.com Events/Media/Communications Volunteer role at Tomorrow's Company Gain valuable work experience working with the Marketing and events team at Tomorrow's Company, a leading ‘think’ and ‘do’ tank which focuses on the relationship between business and society. Tomorrows Company is a research and charity education which publishes research and brings practical business people together to generate and share ideas with the view of influencing decision makers in companies, stakeholders groups and government Successful candidates develop their skills in press, new media, events management, publishing and web management. Tomorrow's Company is a registered charity and a company limited by guarantee. We are a membership organization, so have strong links with our own member corporations but also with other NGO's and think- tanks. So it is an ideal place to get an overall view of the think-tank/Sustainability/Policy arena. We describe ourselves as a ‘think’ and ‘do’ tank because we deal not only in ideas but in their implementation, working with companies as they put new thinking into practice. Every piece of work we do is grounded in the reality of business and tested against the prospects for its execution. We work across the globe with leaders of businesses and other organizations. We push the boundaries of thinking on issues that are critical to the future of business. And we then work with businesses to help them implement new ideas, learn and pursue sustainable futures. Our Vision is to create value with our partners by building a mutually reinforcing link between ideas and implementation – between theory and practice. In so doing, we achieve our purpose of pushing the boundaries of thought leadership and business behavior. Some of the tasks you will be responsible for include:
· Assisting with media relations and press activity managing relationships with key journalists in the broadsheets radio and television · Assisting with the publication of our reports both at design and printing stage · Writing copy for our E-Bulletin –monthly email newsletter on events and forthcoming projects · Managing and promoting our speakers · Managing events: Volunteers design and support a busy schedule of with high-profile speakers from the world of business and beyond. Past speakers have included Al Gore, MP’ etc, these events include report launches and press briefings · Administrative tasks: All of our volunteers are expected to help with such basic tasks as updating the database, mail-outs, answering the phone, taking notes etc. These tasks are shared between all our volunteers. Equally beneficial are the numerous networking opportunities you have as a volunteer for TC. We encourage our volunteers to pursue their own career goals while at Tomorrow’s Company by 'shadowing' members of the team as they attend client meetings and events. As a membership organization, with a broad network, you will also have a chance to meet some of our high-profile business members and sponsors. Volunteers Tomorrow’s Company volunteers come from both London and overseas, and belong to a diverse range of backgrounds, looking to obtain a valuable work experience or looking for a change in career direction. We have between four to six volunteers at any one time, working alongside our full time staff. We deeply value their work as a driving force of our success and as such, we offer an encouraging team environment where volunteers are challenged to take on new roles and learn new skills which will be of use when they seek jobs in our industry. Volunteer roles will usually last for three to six months; volunteer roles are full-time (Monday-Friday, 9am-5:30pm) but hours can be flexible and we also offer part-time volunteer roles. Process If you share our vision and values and are keen to work hard, send your CV and cover letter - telling us about your interests and why you want to join tomorrow’s Company. Please include the period you are available for, and if you are pursuing a part-time or full-time volunteer. Please send your e-mail to: Gerard@tomorrowscompany.com
Tomorrow’s Company Samuel House T: +44 (0) 20 7839 4040 Until 4th September you can reach us on our old number +44 (0) 20 7222 7443 During the working days following 4th September we may be harder to reach but we will try to get back to as soon as we can. If you need to reach any of us in an emergency please call Gerard O’Donnell on +44 (0) 7800 608 625.
As the Premiership Football season is set
to kick off, fans are being advised by Tomorrow’s Company that they need a new
league table by which to assess their clubs.
The usual business of Tomorrow’s Company is as a think tank focusing on the future of business in a changing world. However, Mark Goyder, Founder Director of Tomorrow’s Company and Arsenal season ticket holder, has detected an increasingly strong parallel between football and the business world - with the key word that connects the two being “stewardship”.
“While stewards are more usually thought of, in the football context, as people in orange jackets who make you sit down at matches, it’s time for supporters to think of stewardship more broadly as part of the quest for results,” says Goyder.
“Stewardship means handing something on to the next generation in better shape that you inherited it, and not just the next quarter’s results you see it in the best family businesses and in employee-owned businesses like John Lewis. The footballing parallels are clubs with a long-term view who see beyond wheeling and dealing, clubs which focus on management continuity, youth development, improved facilities, and the club giving something back to the community it comes from.
“We all too rarely see stewardship exercised by the big investors and the pension funds who own our companies - something that Tomorrow’s Company is working to change by developing a stewardship scorecard. Fans who care about their clubs should prize and praise good stewardship.
The current crisis reflects a failure of ownership. We have reached a turning point. Ordinary savers now recognise that it isn’t enough to put their investments in the hands of clever technicians. They will, rightly, want more vigilance over how the money is being made on their behalf. This is what we mean by stewardship – looking after assets for the long term, and being more aware of what is being done in your name – whether the money is going into debt or equity – and having the assurance that those who handle that money are doing so in a principled way.”
As part of its ongoing project on stewardship, supported among others by John Lewis Partnership, Hermes Equity Ownership Services, Lovells, TTP, and Wates, Tomorrow’s Company is now developing a stewardship scorecard. And the first trial of the new scorecard is on Premiership Football Clubs.
To obtain full details of the new scorecard applied to the premiership see here.
The trial on the premiership has received great coverage in the press including
Later this year, the Government will launch a package to help SMEs better understand and respond to the opportunities and risks posed by the move to the low carbon economy as part of their UK Low Carbon Industrial Strategy.
The package will consist of four key elements. One of which will be a guide for business, by business, on the uptake, development and marketing of low carbon solutions, to be produced this autumn, by Tomorrow’s Company, in partnership with businesses, Government and other organisations. The guide is being supported by Halcrow, HSBC, Ogilvy & Mather, Marks & Spencer and the Carbon Trust, among others.
This is laid out on page 74 of the document - you can see this by clicking here with executive summary here.
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