Proxy firm ISS names Andrew Borek to succeed Guerra as head of special situations research

By Svea Herbst-Bayliss

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Andrew Borek will become the head of Institutional Shareholder Services' special situations research group where he will weigh in on critical corporate issues ranging from mergers to who sits on a board, the proxy advisory firm said on Tuesday.

ISS promoted Borek to succeed Cristiano Guerra, who headed the group since 2017 and is leaving ISS to reunite with former colleagues at consultancy Strategic Governance Advisors (SGA).

Borek now ascends to one of Wall Street's most influential positions where he will shape recommendations that mutual funds, pension funds and other larger investors rely on to cast votes in hotly contested corporate elections.

"He is well-known and respected as a subject matter expert in both shareholder activism and a wide range of corporate governance topics," ISS wrote to clients in a letter seen by Reuters.

The role requires expertise in industries ranging from railroads to medical devices and an ability to quickly analyze balance sheets and management track records to determine company board appointments or whether a planned merger should proceed.

The special situations team works hundreds of miles away from Manhattan and often invites corporations and the hedge funds that are demanding changes to make their arguments in offices or hotel rooms in Rockville, Maryland, north of Washington, D.C. Borek, who has a law degree and joined ISS in 2013, will work from the company's Washington office.

Borek worked on the team with Guerra since he was appointed head of the special situations group in 2017 following the departure of Chris Cernich.

Analysts are forecasting more costly fights for corporations as a record number of investors last year pushed for changes and there is no sign of a slowdown in early 2025.

Guerra is joining Cernich, who co-founded SGA, a unit of strategic advisory and communications consultancy FGS Global, in 2016. Several other former ISS executives, including Kim Castellino and Juan Bonifacino, are also partners at SGA advising corporations facing board challenges on how to position themselves when presenting proxy advisory firms.

(Reporting by Svea Herbst-Bayliss; Editing by Emelia Sithole-Matarise)