LONDON (Alliance News) - Professional services firm RPS Group PLC said Wednesday that more than a fifth of shareholders voted against the reappointment of Chair Ken Lever.
At the company's annual meeting, 22% of shareholders voted against resolution eight, which proposed Lever's reappointment. RPS said that shareholders were concerned about the number of directorships Lever currently holds.
Lever is currently holds non-executive positions at Biffa PLC, Blue Prism Group PLC, Gresham House Strategic PLC and Vertu Motors PLC.
"Although disappointed by the number of votes against, the board remains fully supportive of the chairman and the role that he performs," RPS said.
The group said it will consult with shareholders to seek their view on engage further on the point.
Earlier on Wednesday, RPS said it saw a slight dip in fee income for the first quarter of 2019, in line with management expectations.
For the three months to the end of March, RPS's fee income was GBP140.8 million, down from GBP141.9 million for the same period the year before.
Segmentally, RPS's performance in Norway and in the Energy division exceeded management expectations, due to positive market conditions.
The Consulting UK & Ireland business met expectations despite political and economic uncertainty in the region, while Services UK & Netherlands also traded well.
However, results in North America were hit by headwinds including client delays in the start of work, and a slow start to the environmental due diligence market, RPS said.
Also, the Australian property market remained subdued, though the transport sector was strong, with RPS position within strengthened by the acquisition of Corview in February.
RPS said it expects operations in North America and Australia to improve in the second quarter.
Shares in RPS Group were down 3.0% at 188.20 pence on Wednesday.
