The move suggests that big asset managers are planting ESG principles more firmly into their corporate cultures as well as their investment products.

Asset management giant Legg Mason said that it is redefining its approach to corporate social responsibility (CSR) by focusing on six areas it sees as central to the company’s mission of “investing to improve lives”.

With more capital being channeled into socially-driven investing based on client demand, and more scrutiny from shareholders on what asset managers are doing in their own corporate cultures to improve diversity, this week's announcement is a measure of how much investment firms are rethinking their approaches.

The asset house said it will regroup CSR into these areas: ESG investing; diversity and inclusion; sustainability; employee experience; community engagement; and responsible corporate practices. It used yesterday's announcement and the release of its 2019 CSR Report to restate that diversity and inclusion are a strategic priority. The firm took steps in this direction last year when it brought on Regina Curry as its first chief diversity officer, reporting directly to the CEO Joseph Sullivan.

Sullivan said the six areas are ones that "we believe we can build momentum and make a meaningful difference.” He was one of around 150 CEOs who signed up to helping create the CEO Action for Diversity and Inclusion program launched in June 2017 by the US PwC chair Tim Ryan. The business coalition advocates for improving US workplace diversity and includes around 700 US CEOs of businesses, academic institutions, and non-profits.

Around $300 billion of Legg Mason's long term assets under management are in products that follow environmental, social and governance principles. This accounts for roughly 40 per cent of total assets managed, which stood at $782 billion as of September 30, 2019.