Glass Lewis has launched its annual policy survey – joining ISS, which Dave blogged about last week. The survey is geared towards investors – since that’s the customer base for the proxy advisor – but it’s open to anyone willing to spend 45 minutes of their time. Glass Lewis’s announcement gives this additional color:

The goal of this survey is to inform Glass Lewis’ policy development along with our processes and understanding of the governance landscape by gathering a wide range of perspectives. The topics included should be relevant to all parties involved in corporate governance. However, some of the questions are directly related to proxy voting, and their phrasing reflects Glass Lewis’ role supporting investors in their proxy voting and broader stewardship work, as well as our understanding of investor expectations.

We have indicated where questions may not be applicable to non-investors, but nonetheless welcome their perspective on these topics. In addition, we have indicated where questions are relevant to specific markets.

The survey should be understood in the context of Glass Lewis’ approach to proxy research, which combines broad initial filters, used to identify outliers based on market best practices and investor expectations, with nuanced, case-by-case analysis. We do not employ (nor does this survey seek to establish) one-size-fits-all rules in determining ultimate vote recommendations – every recommendation reflects the company’s unique circumstances.

Responses will be accepted until 5pm PT on September 15th.

– Liz Dunshee