Introducing reo®
40 years of responsible investment experience
For over four decades, we – through our predecessor companies – have been at the forefront of responsible investing. Our heritage in responsible investment spans back to Europe’s first social and environmentally screened fund over 40 years ago. We started engaging on climate change via our reo® service in 2000 and were a founding member of the Principles of Responsible Investment in 2006.
Responsible Engagement Overlay
A track record in engagement2, providing first-hand insight into what effective engagement looks like
Experienced RI specialists with deep expertise to support your active ownership activities
1 Refers to externally managed client assets. Source: Columbia Threadneedle Investments, as at 30 June 2026.
2 Reflects the experience of a group of legal entities whose parent company is Columbia Threadneedle Investments UK International Limited and which previously operated as BMO Global Asset Management EMEA. These entities are now part of Columbia Threadneedle Investments, the asset management business of Ameriprise Financial, Inc.
Discover how our Responsible Engagement Overlay service, reo®, can help strengthen your responsible investment strategy.
Driving meaningful positive change
Access specialist expertise
Benefit from the expertise of our engagement and voting analysts, whose knowledge spans a broad range of ESG issues, sectors and regions. Our specialists also contribute to collaborative initiatives and provide input into public policy discussions.
Support accountability and reporting
Use our reporting to support stakeholder engagement and help meet applicable regulatory requirements.
Shareholder meetings voted at
Total proposals
Proposals where we voted against management in 2025
Be part of our holistic engagement programme
Our engagement programme is structured around six themes covering the ESG issues most relevant to investors. We engage with companies across both emerging and developed markets worldwide.
Depending on the nature of our objectives, we engage at different levels within a company, including with the board, senior management, investor relations, sustainability teams and operational specialists.
Our approach is based on constructive, confidential dialogue. We generally engage with companies on a one-to-one basis, allowing us to build trusted relationships as long-term investors. We also collaborate with other investors and engage with non-governmental organisations (NGOs) or industry groups where doing so is in our clients’ long-term economic interests.3
Where companies fail to make progress on issues that matter to our clients, we may consider escalation. This can include supporting shareholder resolutions or voting against the appointment of directors.
Our engagement focuses on listed equities and corporate credit, across both financial and non-financial issuers. This is reinforced by our broader engagement on public policy.
In 2025, we conducted 1,069 engagements with 578 companies across 41 countries.4
3 When participating in collaborative initiatives, we ensure that we act at all times in accordance with competition law requirements, including, but not limited to, the prohibition of concerted practices between companies.
Clients have a voice
We incorporate your views into our engagement programme through our client consultation. A distinctive feature of reo® is the opportunity for clients to share their priorities across ESG themes each year. We use the findings to help shape our thematic engagement and related projects for the year ahead.
Aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals
We align our engagement with the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and their 169 underlying targets. This globally recognised and ambitious framework provides a consistent way to articulate sustainability objectives.
Engagement reinforced by voting
We believe voting is an effective way to encourage improvements in corporate practices and market standards, while reinforcing objectives established through engagement on ESG issues. We seek to exercise voting rights on behalf of our clients at all shareholder meetings of companies held in their portfolios.
Where we consider it appropriate, voting against management on significant resolutions sends a clear signal to the board and can support further engagement. Our voting programme is structured regionally to reflect local nuances in company law and corporate governance best-practice codes.
We are committed to transparency in our voting activities. We publish our complete voting record and explain our rationale where we do not support management proposals.
Subscribe to our insights
Make your emails more relevant by personalising your preferences and receive insights and information tailored to your interests.
Thank you. You can now visit your preference centre to choose which insights you would like to receive by email.
Important information
Threadneedle Management Luxembourg S.A., registered with the Registre de Commerce et des Sociétés (Luxembourg), No. B 110242, and/or Columbia Threadneedle Netherlands B.V., regulated by the Dutch Authority for the Financial Markets (AFM), registration No. 08068841. Columbia Threadneedle Investments (Columbia Threadneedle) is the global brand name of the Columbia and Threadneedle group of companies.
© 2026 Columbia Threadneedle. All rights reserved.