5 Questions to Ask Your Financial Advisor

Have I invested in any funds that voted my shares in favor of racial equity audits?

If they answer yes, Strive believes a vote mandating corporations to conduct racial equity audits is not in the best interest of those companies. See question #5 for the final follow up.

If they answer no – or – they are unsure, your financial advisor could be answering to the best of their knowledge, but they may be incorrect. For example, 6 of the top 10 asset managers (i.e. Blackrock, State Street, etc.) voted in favor of the 2022 Civil Rights Audit at Apple. We suggest sharing the information provided in the deck here to aid your conversation with your advisor.

You can also read our recent letter to Apple’s CEO here, regarding the 2022 shareholder proposal to “conduct a racial equity audit” that received support from BlackRock.

Have I invested in any funds that voted my shares in favor of emissions reduction plans or executive compensation tied to environmental and social goals?

If they answer yes, Strive believes executive compensation tied to non-fiduciary factors and mandated Scope 3 reduction proposals are not in the best interest of companies. See question #5 for the final follow up.

If they answer no – or – they are unsure, your financial advisor could be answering to the best of their knowledge, but they may be incorrect. For example, 9 of the top 10 asset managers voted in favor of 3 activist investors being added to the board of Exxon against management recommendation. Additionally, 5 of the top 10 asset managers (i.e. Blackrock, State Street, Vanguard etc.) voted in favor of the 2022 Proposal to reduce Scope 3 emissions at Chevron. We suggest sharing the information provided in the deck here to aid your conversation with your advisor.

Read more here on how Strive engages with corporations on topics like Scope 3 emission caps, executive compensation & more. You can also check out our recent letters to Chevron, Exxon, Disney & Apple.

Have I invested in any funds that systematically underweight companies in any of the following sectors: coal, mining, oil and gas exploration, or firearms?

If they answer yes, Strive believes funds that place values based constraints on a portfolio cost an investor money over the long run. See question #5 for the final follow up. 

If they answer no, this is a good thing from Strive’s perspective. We believe removing corporations from a portfolio for values-based reasons could cost investors over the long run.

Do you use ESG factors in your external fund evaluation process, internal operations, or client portfolio optimization strategies?

If they answer yes, Strive believes ESG factors in the investment industry detract from long run investment performance. See question #5 for the final follow up.

If they answer no, this is a good thing from Strive’s perspective. We believe ESG factors in the investment industry detract from long run investment performance.

If the answer to any of the above questions is “yes,” can you please inform me of alternative investment options so that I may select funds and portfolios that best align with my own long-term financial interests?

If yes, great – thank your financial advisor for putting your long term financial interest first!

If you are interested in Strive’s investment stewardship philosophy & our offerings, we encourage you to share the materials provided on this page and on our websites – strive.com & strivefunds.com – with your advisor.

Click here to download a presentation with more information that you can share with your financial advisor.

Read Vivek Ramaswamy’s Latest Op-Ed – Are you investing in woke political activism? 5 questions you need to ask – here.