The day Big Oil discovered that the makeup of its board could be changed against its will
In the short history of shareholder activism, the humiliation of the board of ExxonMobil on Wednesday takes some beating. The directors were comprehensively out-played by an environmentally minded hedge fund formed only six months ago that arrived with a stake of only 0.02%.
Despite emerging almost from nowhere, Engine No. 1, the upstart fund, succeeded in persuading other shareholders to vote two of its four candidates on to the board; a third newcomer could follow when the “too close to call” tallies are finally counted. The campaigning achievement is remarkable.
