Get Ready for a Change in Voting…

The voice of employees is becoming more important and influential in organisations – now, new legislation is taking it to the next level.

As employee engagement is becoming a key principle of good governance, companies are starting to bring about two-way conversations in various ways – from employee-based AGMs to appointed NED employee representatives. In some cases, employees have even been appointed to boards.

Employee share plans are a great way to engage, reward and motivate employees to strive for a common purpose. Giving employee shareholders an opportunity to vote at general meetings is a powerful part of this. And, you can include this as employee engagement activity in your annual reporting.

What SRD II means for you

EU legislation is making it a requirement to offer shareholders the chance to vote as of September this year. The EU Shareholder Rights Directive II (SRD II) pushes for greater transparency regarding the investment strategy, the directors’ remuneration, the voting process in general meetings and the shareholders themselves.

This backs up the UK Corporate Governance Code to promote employee engagement by giving them a greater voice, which significantly benefits businesses, according to Investors In People.

Businesses without a voting facility will need to create or source one. Meanwhile, it’s an opportunity for those who already have one to review its capabilities and make sure it’s easy for employees to use so they take part.

Giving you and your employees a seamless experience

Shareworks by Morgan Stanley has introduced a tailored voting process ahead of time. Although it has been part of our standard service proposition for some time, we have taken this opportunity to provide an updated and modernised version to existing clients since March. This upgrade has been well-received.

Amongst others, one client said: “This was a really smooth process on our side, so we appreciate your support.”

The system has been designed with the employee experience as the primary focus. It’s a fully branded, secure and automated process, with reminder emails and reporting features. Overall, the experience is user friendly and streamlined for both share plan administrators and participants.

Want to engage and empower your people?

If you’d like to know more about our online participant voting platform or would like to learn about how Shareworks by Morgan Stanley makes it easy for participants to engage more with share plans, get in touch.