IslamicFinance.de

Companies in the GCC region will have to formulate effective retirement plans if they are to remain competitive in the market place, so says Mercer. The International human resources consultancy has highlighted the trend for expatriates to extend their stay in GCC countries to call for a greater emphasis to be given to planning for life after work for employees. Mercer says that there are several benefits for employers in the formulation of retirement plans for their workforce, including the positioning of a company as an employer of choice amongst competitors, the attraction of international expertise and the retention of key talent. Mercer also draws attention to enhanced employee engagement as being another key benefit.

With a relative paucity of attractively priced assets available to long-term investors, European institutional investors are diverting their focus and resources to alternative assets, according to Mercer’s 2015 European Asset Allocation survey. The findings also show that the use of passive management of equity and bond holdings increased, suggesting that European investors increasingly prefer to seek returns from manager skill within alternative and unconstrained mandates, while harvesting cheap beta in core equity and bond portfolios. Mercer’s survey also found an increased focus on environmental, social, and governance (ESG) factors within the investment process amongst participating funds.

Mercer in partnership with the Institute for International Research Middle East (IIRME), will be presenting the findings of its latest survey on Corporate Social Responsibility and Sustainability Programs, Policies and Practices in the region at the 10th CSR Summit held on May 21, 2013 at The Address Hotel Dubai Marina. Taking place over a period from April to May, 2013, the results will be ready for sharing at the conference organised by IIRME on the very same topic. The session will also provide a platform for benchmarking local practices to the global findings from the survey. The survey is open until May 1st, 2013.

Mercer plans to integrate its environmental, social and governance (ESG) ratings accros all of its manager-search and performance data. This should not only encourage reporting on ESG but also offer an objective approach that applies across wide range of strategies and so enable smaller clients to benefit from their service.