JLL specialists featured at conference on responsible investing

Two specialists in ethics and governance will address the critical link between ethics, corporate governance and financial performance at the Conference on Sustainable, Responsible, Impact Investing (SRI), Nov. 9-11, in Denver. JLL’s General Counsel, Mark Ohringer, and Ethisphere Institute CEO Tim Erblich will share compelling research and first-hand experience from the global real estate services company during the Thursday session, “It Pays To Be Honest: Linking Integrity to ROI.”

The joint presentation will explore the internal and external indicators, ethical behavior and performance metrics that companies must recognize and act on in order to build trust and accountability among investors and stakeholders, such as regulatory compliance, sustainability, employee engagement, Board of Directors’ leadership and guidance, and reputation management.

In addition, Ohringer and Erblich will address how companies must also acknowledge the external negligence factors that can adversely impact an organization’s standing with the investment community, such as industry quality validations, negative media scrutiny and litigation pleadings in major cases.

“In today’s complex and dynamic investing environment, an enterprise can only sustain itself over the long-term by acting responsibly and with integrity,” said Ohringer. “The interrelationships and link between ethics, corporate governance and financial performance have been well-documented, and companies that embrace and deliver on these factors can be rewarded by the investment community and key stakeholders. We believe JLL is uniquely positioned to steward an ‘Ethics Everywhere’ approach to our global business.”

Ethisphere CEO Tim Erblich believes today’s regulatory, economic and cultural environments pose unique challenges for companies striving to distinguish themselves from their peers and competitors.

“A company’s ethical and responsible behavior, combined with a number of critical intangibles, have clearly become the driving factors in evaluating a company’s performance and investment appeal,” he said. “Sophisticated investors now place a premium on leading companies’ quality governance and compliance practices compared with companies who exhibit poor corporate governance and business practices,” he said.

Erblich said that JLL and other companies recognized by Ethisphere as one of the “World’s Most Ethical Company” award recipients outperformed the S&P 500 Index as a group by 3.3 percent last year, as well as outperforming other major financial benchmarks.

“We believe the financial performance of JLL and other award recipient companies illustrates the value sophisticated investors place on the link between ethical behavior and strong corporate governance,” he added.

JLL, named a 2016 World’s Most Ethical Company by Ethisphere for the ninth consecutive year, has fully embraced strong ethical behavior and business practices through its ongoing “Ethics Everywhere” initiative, and maintains a global team of ethics officers and liaisons to ensure that it remains a foundational standard for JLL.

The company’s 2015 Annual Report details both JLL and LaSalle Investment Management’s commitment to five key issues [PW1] that guide its actions in all countries of operation. This commitment manifests itself through “Building a Better Tomorrow,” JLL’s vision for becoming the world’s most sustainable global real estate services firm.

JLL is the recipient of dozens of awards globally for its achievements in environmental stewardship, ethics and corporate social responsibility and diversity, including Fortune magazine’s 2015 “World’s Most Admired Companies;” Energy Star’s 2016 Partner of the Year Award – Sustained Excellence; CR magazine’s 100 Best Corporate Citizens; Affinity Inc. magazine’s 2016 “Top Corporations for LGBT Economic Empowerment;” and achieving a perfect score on the Human Rights Campaign Foundation’s 2015 Corporate Equality Index.

For more information about the Conference On SRI, Nov. 9-11, at the Hyatt Regency Downtown Denver Hotel, visit http://www.sriconference.com/.

About JLL

JLL (NYSE: JLL) is a professional services and investment management firm offering specialized real estate services to clients seeking increased value by owning, occupying and investing in real estate.  JLL is a Fortune 500 company with, as of December 31, 2015, revenue of $6.0 billion and fee revenue of $5.2 billion, more than 280 corporate offices, operations in over 80 countries and a global workforce of more than 60,000.  On behalf of its clients, the company provides management and real estate outsourcing services for a property portfolio of 4.0 billion square feet, or 372 million square meters, and completed $138 billion in sales, acquisitions and finance transactions in 2015. As of Sept. 30, its investment management business, LaSalle Investment Management, has $59.7 billion of real estate assets under management. JLL is the brand name, and a registered trademark, of Jones Lang LaSalle Incorporated. For further information, visit www.jll.com.