Responsible Investment Stewardship Analyst - Remote

Job Description

At Columbia Threadneedle Investments, we are stewards of our client's capital and active engagement is an integral part of our approach. We are looking to add a research analyst to our Responsible Investment team focused on stewardship research, engagement, and proxy voting to help drive this effort forward. The successful candidate should have proven research, analytical and problem-solving capability relevant to fundamental investment analysis.
This role will report into the Global Head of Stewardship and handle the coordination of the prioritization, escalation and tracking of stewardship (engagement / voting) activities with portfolio companies. This will be done in collaboration with the equity analysts, fixed income analysts and portfolio managers.
The focus of this role varies across all areas of stewardship, primarily:
• Focus on environmental, social & governance, operational excellence, capital allocation policies, managerial incentives
• Consultative research driven approach with management teams contributes to investment insights
• Exercise use of proxy voting rights

Responsibilities

• Work with and support the Head of Stewardship in the formulation, development and delivery of the global stewardship strategy and approach.
• Produce actionable issuer research to identify and analyze trends, risks and drivers of change, growth opportunities, quality of standards of operating practice and the competitive landscape for and of businesses, with a particular lens around corporate governance and compensation.
o Liaise and collaborate with global equity and credit analysts to identify and analyze investment opportunities and risks, integrating relational stewardship and responsible investment insights within fundamental research.
• Collaborate with the global proxy voting team including providing research and voting recommendations, reviewing, and conducting voting controls, producing, and delivering presentations to internal clients including the mutual funds boards, and supporting the Proxy Voting Sub-Committee of the Investment Oversight Committee.
o Coordinate and maintain the firm's proxy principles and voting policy.
o Work with colleagues to educate and prioritize implementation of the effective use of voting rights exercised by the firm.
• Contribute to the firm's thought leadership, client engagement and engagement in industry forums and related initiatives.

Required Qualifications

• 3+ years prior experience in the securities industry; investment experience as a research analyst or in an analyst support role.
• Familiarity with ESG concepts from the investor perspective.
• Experience with issuer engagement and proxy voting.
• Possess a high degree of intellectual curiosity.
• A focus on output and goal attainment.
• Team player, able to work in a multi-disciplinary, global environment.
• Able to commit to Columbia Threadneedle's corporate values.

Preferred Qualifications

• Able to communicate investment ideas clearly and engage with corporate leaders on controversial issues.
• Experience working with ISS Proxy Exchange, Excel, Word, Access, PowerPoint, Bloomberg and Aladdin.
• Familiarity with the relevant compliance and regulatory practice.
• CFA, Accounting or legal qualification or equivalent.
• ESG-related credentials from SASB, PRI or CFA Institute.
• Familiarity with R / Python would be an advantage.
• The role may involve occasional global travel.