ABSTRACT
One of the recurring questions with respect to investor engagement with companies is whether investors have sufficient influence over companies to motivate change in corporate responsibility policy. A related question is whether the effectiveness of investor engagement can be assessed. This chapter reviews a specific case of investor engagement with a company—GlaxoSmithKline (GSK)—on a strategic corporate responsibility issue: namely, the threats to the industry's business models arising from the debates around access to medicines in Africa. It provides an overview of investor engagement with the company, placing the discussions in the context of ongoing non-governmental organisation (NGO) activity relating to access to medicines. The chapter discusses investors' motivations for engaging with GSK and assesses the specific contribution of investors to encouraging the company to change its policies in relation to access to medicines.
