Pension Funds and the Bottom Line PDF Download

Author: Keith P. Ambachtsheer
Publisher: Irwin Professional Publishing
ISBN:
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 186

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Author: Joel Makower
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1439143781
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 342

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This is the first book to distill the best of the forward-looking ideas of socially responsible policies emerging from the corporate world. By following the suggestions detailed here, individuals can institute similar programs in their own companies—because it's the right choice to make, and the smart one. Something new is happening in the business world. Determined to stay competitive in an era of downsizing, companies are making a surprising discovery: Practices that benefit employees, communities, and the environment aren’t just good deeds—they’re also good business. The leaders of this new business vision include household names like Honeywell, Stride Rite, Hasbro, Reebok, and Levi Strauss & Co. These and other American companies have discovered that in order to create and sustain economic opportunity and reap the rewards of a good reputation, they must put their policies where their principles are in such diverse areas as work and family life, community welfare, and ecology. Whether you run a company or just work for one, you’ll find here abundant inspiration and examples of how businesses can safeguard the environment and improve the lot of their employees, their communities, and the world beyond while ensuring their own long-term profitability.

Author: George F. Russell, Jr.
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 0470537272
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 209

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The father of pension fund management shares essential lessons to building a business As the world's leading pension fund consultant, George Russell's advice has been sought by many of America's largest corporations. A pioneer in this business since the late 1960s, Russell has seen a lot. Now, he shares his experiences in this field with you, and provides valuable insights into what it takes to succeed in business today. Broken down into ten chapters, Success by Ten describes significant moments in the origins and development of pension fund consulting and the institutional investment industry. This history is intertwined with Russell's own personal story and the innovations that his company introduced to the industry. Author George Russell is well known to many throughout the investment industry as the first pension fund consultant Each chapter represents a business lesson that Russell has learned during his career Outlines a people-centric approach to building a successful corporate culture Taken together, the innovations outlined throughout these pages spurred the professionalization of pension fund management, with the potential benefit of improving financial security for everyone who is investing for retirement. In Success By Ten, Russell discusses the development of these innovations and reveals how you can apply them to build a better business.

Author: Keith P. Ambachtsheer
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 1118160657
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 252

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Praise for Pension Revolution "When Keith Ambachtsheer puts his keen mind to work on a problem, watch out! Here he exposes today's fragile arrangements for the most serious social dilemma of our times--financing retirement. Then he provides a compelling and powerful set of solutions. His writings are essential reading for all who care about the future of American living standards." --Peter Bernstein, founder and President, Peter L. Bernstein, Inc., and author of Capital Ideas and Against the Gods "This book describes one of the most ingenious inventions in the history of mankind: pension funds offering credible promises about old-age income. It reads like a thriller: how can well-governed pension funds be created in an imperfect world in which mortals wrestle with foibles and moral shortcomings? One of the world's leading experts on pensions searches for the answer--and finds it." --Lans Bovenberg, Scientific Director, Network for Studies on Pensions, Aging, and Retirement, Tilburg University, The Netherlands "Pension Revolution exposes the inadequacies of current pension systems and persuasively makes the case for the fundamental changes that are needed. It is essential reading for both the pension industry and policymakers." --Elizabeth Bryan, Chair, Investment Committee, Unisuper Management PM Ltd, Australia "Most analyses of complicated issues deal with complexity by simplifying or only looking at one piece-part, and, in doing so, provide limited value. In stark contrast, Keith Ambachtsheer boldly wades into the complexity in Pension Revolution to come up with a valuable integrative solution. He is a most welcome revolutionary!" --Roger Martin, Dean, Joseph L. Rotman School of Management, University of Toronto, Canada "We have known Keith for over ten years, and consistently over that time, he has constructively and comprehensively challenged conventional wisdom. He has done this so effectively that many of his initial thoughts have now become universally accepted norms. Such is his energy however that he continues to push the boundaries of pension and investment thinking." --Peter Moon, Chief Investment Officer, Universities Superannuation Scheme Ltd, UK "Pension Revolution not only explains the shortcomings of the existing pension system and the underlying design features that have resulted in the current pension upheaval. It also offers thoughtful and creative suggestions for prospective pension design. A must-read for anyone interested in the future of retirement finance." --James Poterba, Professor of Economics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a member of the TIAA-CREF Board of Trustees

Author: Pablo Lopez Murphy
Publisher: World Bank Publications
ISBN:
Category : Pension trusts
Languages : en
Pages : 46

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"Murphy and Musalem conduct an empirical study of the effect of the accumulation of pension fund financial assets on national saving using a panel of 43 industrial and developing countries. The authors find evidence suggesting that the accumulation of pension fund financial assets might increase national saving when these funds are the result of a mandatory pension program. By contrast, national saving might be unaffected when pension funds are the result of a public program implemented to foster voluntary pension saving"--Abstract.

Author: Sabri Boubaker
Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing
ISBN: 1788110005
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 521

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Book Description
The triple bottom line is an accounting framework with social, environmental and financial factors. This Handbook examines the nexus between these areas by scrutinising aspects of socially responsible investment, finance and sustainable development, corporate socially responsible banking firms, the stock returns of sustainable firms, green bonds and sustainable financial instruments.

Author: Tessa Hebb
Publisher: Cornell University Press
ISBN: 9780801446962
Category : Investments
Languages : en
Pages : 172

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Book Description
In No Small Change, Tessa Hebb examines the ability of pension funds, now the largest single driver of financial markets around the world, to use their ownership position to change corporate practices for the sake of the bottom line and, perhaps, change the world for the better in the process. Pension funds are not the new moral conscience of the twenty-first century, but they are significant owners of today's corporations. Because pension funds have to pay out benefits over many decades, they are increasingly concerned about the long-term value of the stocks they hold in their portfolios. Risks posed by climate change can have a huge impact on future returns. To lower the risks associated with an uncertain future, pension funds are engaging corporations and using their influence to raise the environmental, social, and governance (ESG) standards of companies. At its best, Hebb finds, corporate engagement offers a long-term view of value that both promotes higher ESG standards and adds share value, thus providing long-term benefits to future pension beneficiaries. At its worst it may divert the attention of pension fund officials from their primary responsibility of ensuring the retirement benefits of their members. This book weighs the influence of corporate engagement on firms in an effort to see how the potential from this newly emerging force is being realized.

Author:
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Savings and loan associations
Languages : en
Pages : 518

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Author: Annika E. Sundén
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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The investment practices of public pension funds have become a topic of major interest in the wake of President Clinton's 1999 proposal to invest a portion of the Social Security Trust Funds in equities. Both supporters and opponents of the proposal point to the performance of public plans to argue their case. Supporters cite the success of Federal plans, particularly the Federal Thrift Savings Plan (TSP), which has avoided picking individual stocks by investing in a stock index and has steered clear of projects with less than market returns. Divestiture of stocks for social or political reasons has also not been a problem, and TSP has avoided government intervention in the private sector since individual portfolio managers vote the proxies. Opponents of Social Security Trust Fund investment in equities point to state and local pension funds. They contend that state and local pensions often undertake investments that sacrifice return to achieve political or social goals, divest stocks to demonstrate that they do not support some perceived immoral or unethical behavior, and intervene in corporate activity. Opponents claim that if Social Security's investment options were broadened, Congress would use the Trust Fund money for similar unproductive activities. An important question is the extent to which allegations about state and local plans are true. This study explores four possible avenues through which social or political considerations could enter the investment decisions of state and local pension funds. The first section focuses on economically targeted investments (ETIs), those investments that are designed to meet some special need within the state. The second section looks at instances of pension fund activism, whereby the fund managers attempt to influence corporate behavior to improve profitability or other aspects of corporate performance. The third section investigates the extent to which state and local pension plans have avoided or divested certain holdings in order to make a political or ethical statement. The fourth section investigates the extent to which states and localities have used pension funds as an escape valve for general budget pressures. This comprehensive review yields the following conclusions. First, economically targeted investments account for no more than 2.5 percent of total state and local holdings. Although early studies showed plans sacrificing considerable return for targeting their investments to in-state activities, recent survey data reveal no adverse impact on returns as a result of the current small amount of ETI activity. Second, public plans in only three states have seriously engaged in shareholder activism, and this activism appears to have been motivated by a desire to improve the bottom line not to make a political statement. The literature suggests that this activity has had a negligible to positive impact on returns. Third, the only significant divestiture that has occurred was related to companies doing business in South Africa before 1994. This was a unique situation where worldwide consensus among industrial nations led to a global ban on investment in that country. With respect to tobacco, public plans have generally resisted divestiture, and only a few have actually sold their stock. Finally, state and local governments have borrowed occasionally from their pension funds or reduced their contributions in the wake of budget pressures, but this activity has been restrained by the courts and frequently reversed. In short, the story that emerges at the state and local level is that while in the early 1980s some public plans sacrificed returns for social considerations, plan managers have become much more sophisticated. Today, public plans appear to be performing as well as private plans.

Author: Adrian Henriques
Publisher: Earthscan
ISBN: 1849773343
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 207

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The concept of the 'triple bottom line' (TBL) - the idea that business activity can simultaneously deliver financial, social and environmental benefits - was introduced in the early 1990s. A decade on, The Triple Bottom Line: Does it All Add Up? brings together the world's leading experts on corporate responsibility to assess the implications, benefits and limitations of the TBL. This collection provides a review of what has already been achieved in stimulating change in corporate culture and bringing businesses to an appreciation of the importance and benefits of corporate social responsibility (CSR) and good environmental performance. It further explores the conceptual and practical limits of the metaphor of the TBL and sets out what can be achieved through regulation and legislation, presenting detailed professional procedures for environmental accounting and management and social auditing. The contributors' wealth of experience and insight provides a vivid picture of how much attention is now being focused by businesses on delivering more than just financial targets, and they clearly outline the necessary steps for successfully continuing along this trajectory.