Edelman's second annual Trust Barometer Special Report: Institutional Investors, based on a September/October 2018 online quantitative survey of 500 institutional investors (100 each from US, UK, Canada, Japan & Germany), revealed thought-worthy findings, particularly for public companies seeking to understand the leading factors that will build - and engender trust and strengthen their relationships with - their investor base.
Noteworthy findings include:
- 65% strongly agree that actively engaging the investment community on corporate governance matters impacts trust of a company when considering investing in or recommending an investment.
- 92% (93% US) of respondents will support a reputable activist investor at one of their investee companies if they believe change is necessary, and 87% (83% US) say their firms are more interested in taking an activist approach to investing.
- 98% say companies should take a public stand on one or more social issues - with cybersecurity, workplace diversity, and national security topping the list.
- 95% of investors (89% US) say maintaining healthy company culture has an impact on trust, and 95% (91% US) say enforcing a corporate code of conduct at all levels of the company has an impact on trust.
- 94% of investors (and 94% US) agree they must trust a company's board of directors before making or recommending an investment, and 95% of investors say an engaged & effective board is important (58% say "very important") when considering whether to invest in a company
One caveat based on an observation of the survey demographics (page 2): 70% of respondents were male and 30% female. Assuming a more diverse respondent pool, based on other surveys that identify results by gender (e.g., PwC's 2018 Annual Corporate Directors Survey), it's quite possible the survey results would differ.