(Bloomberg) -- Microsoft Corp., responding to a push from shareholders, has hired a law firm to review its sexual harassment and gender discrimination policies and scrutinize a 2019 board investigation of co-founder Bill Gates.

The effort by Arent Fox LLP will include a summary of the board’s previous probe into allegations against Gates as well as the results of any harassment investigations from 2019 to the present against other board members or members of Microsoft’s senior leadership team, the company said Thursday in a statement. 

“The firm is experienced in these matters and has not previously been involved in representing Microsoft in employment matters, nor has it done a significant amount of work for the company in the past,” Microsoft said. Arent Fox will report to the board and Microsoft management, which will prepare a plan to act on recommendations. After that, the board will provide a public report on the review, findings and management’s plans to address them. 

A non-binding shareholder resolution called on Microsoft to review the effectiveness of its sexual harassment policies. The resolution, sponsored by Arjuna Capital, was approved in November over the company’s opposition. It came after reports that Gates behaved inappropriately toward female employees years ago.

The review will include examinations of concerns raised by employees in a lengthy 2019 email thread and actions the company took to address those concerns. It will also examine steps taken to hold workers and executives accountable and include data on cases investigated since 2019 and their outcome, all steps requested in the resolution. The law firm will also benchmark Microsoft against best practices in place at other companies. 

“Our culture remains our number one priority and the entire Board appreciates the critical importance of a safe and inclusive environment for all Microsoft employees,” Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Satya Nadella said in the statement. “We’re committed not just to reviewing the report but learning from the assessment so we can continue to improve the experiences of our employees. I embrace this comprehensive review as an opportunity to continue to get better.”

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