People moves

Sarasin & Partners appoints Roberts to lead charity team

Taking over role from Richard Maitland

Sarasin & Partners has appointed Melanie Roberts as head of the firm’s charity team, taking over from Richard Maitland, who has held the role since 2003.

Roberts joined the Sarasin & Partners charity team – which currently manages £8bn of assets for more than 480 charity clients – in 2011, having previously worked at Newton Investment Management. She was made a partner at Sarasin & Partners in 2016.

In her new role, Roberts will focus on strategy, stewardship and client service, and said despite challenging markets posing “a tough backdrop for charities trying to preserve spending power”, she looks forward to supporting “clients in navigating these turbulent times”.

Guy Matthews, managing partner at Sarasin & Partners, added he is confident Roberts will develop and team and services amid the “challenging economic backdrop” and said, “Melanie has been at the very heart of the charity franchise’s success since she joined us more than a decade ago”.

Maitland, who will become a senior partner, added his vote of confidence that the “charity team will flourish under Melanie’s leadership”.

Nordea appoints head for new climate and environment team

Peter Sandahl takes up head of climate and environment and deputy head of group sustainability role

Nordea has formed a climate and environment team to oversee activities at a group level and appointed Peter Sandahl to head it up.

Sandahl, whose role will be head of climate and environment and deputy head of group sustainability, will take up the position on 13 March 2023, leaving his current job as head of sustainability at Nordea Life & Pension, which he has held since 2019.

He is also part of the Partnership for Carbon Accounting for Financials, Principles for Responsible Investment and Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero.

“I’m very happy to have been given the trust to lead the work in this important area. I look forward to working with colleagues, customers and the broader community in further developing Nordea’s climate transition plan and executing on our goals and commitments,” Sandahl said.

The new team will lead Nordea’s strategic agenda by ensuring progress and group-wide alignment across financing and investment activities to meet its net-zero goals.

Brooks Macdonald head of responsible investment to leave

A week after the firm reveals its CFO and COO are set to leave

Ben Palmer is to leave Brooks Macdonald in March, after more than a decade at the investment manager, to pursue new opportunities.

He joined the company as a graduate trainee in 2011, rising to become head of responsible investment (RIS) in August 2020. No details were provided about where he is expected to land.

The company said: “He leaves our RIS proposition in a position of strength with a team of experts with deep experience well positioned to continue to evolve our offer to meet growing client demand. We would like to thank Ben and wish him the very best with his future endeavours.”

Palmer’s departure comes after it was confirmed last week that chief financial officer Ben Thorpe and chief operating officer Lynsey Cross are to leave in the coming months.

A Brooks Macdonald spokesperson confirmed to Portfolio Adviser that the departures are unrelated.

Earlier this month, the firm’s latest set of financial results revealed a 4.5% uptick in funds under management to £16.2bn in the three months to 31 December 2022. FUM, however, remains 6.4% below the £17.3bn Brooks Macdonald had on its books at the end of 2021.

This article first appeared on ESG Clarity sister title Portfolio Adviser.

Federated Hermes hires engagement lead for Asia and EMs

Part of the EOS team

Federated Hermes has hired Ross Teverson from Jupiter as a dedicated team head for engagement in Asia and emerging markets.

Based in London, Teverson will be responsible for the development and delivery of Federated Hermes’ EOS engagement plan with companies in the region. The group said it engaged with 270 firms in Asia and EMs last year, and it now has 45 individuals working on its stewardship team globally.

At Jupiter, Teverson was head of strategy for global emerging market equities and was also a member of the stewardship committee and leadership group. He has also worked at Standard Life Investments.

See also: – Federated Hermes Q&A: There would be interest in sustainable China funds

He said: “Global momentum behind shareholder proposals on climate and human rights remain on the increase, with Asia and emerging markets at the forefront of this expansion. We are also seeing Asian regulators progressively encourage the adoption and disclosure of Paris-aligned transition strategies. The team and I look forward to broadening the climate conversation from a focus on environmental risk to amplify the social risk of failing to ensure a just transition, alongside our existing programme of engagement.”

UBS AM hires head of impact investing

Experience at pension funds and the PRI

UBS Asset Management has hired Narina Mnatsakanian (pictured) in the newly-created role of head of impact investing.

Reporting to head of sustainable investing Lucy Thomas and based in the Amsterdam office, Mnatsakanian will lead the expansion of the group’s impact investment offering, research and impact measurement capabilities.

Previously, Mnatsakanian led sustainability and impact investments at Van Lanschot Kempen, and was portfolio manager of the Kempen Global Impact Pool, multi asset impact fund. She has also worked in private equity fund of funds, a Dutch pension fund asset manager and was head of global networks & outreach at the Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI).

SBTi recruits chief impact officer

Spearheading the worldwide engagement strategy

Maria Outters has been appointed the Science-Based Targets Initiative (SBTi)’s first chief impact officer.

The role encompasses spearheading the engagement strategy worldwide, strengthening governance and accelerating growth of corporate climate through science-based targets. Outters’ responsibilities also include supporting the incorporation of the SBTi as a stand-alone NGO later this year and achieving the SBTi’s 2025 goals: 10,000 companies with science-based targets, representing 5GT of emissions and 20% of the global economy.

Outters has 20 years’ experience at companies such as Sodexo and Centre Parcs in Paris. She said: “Time is running out to meet the goals of the Paris Agreement, and we must expand the role of the private sector in rapidly cutting greenhouse gas emissions. That’s why I joined the SBTi – to advance this proven method for companies to align their operations and strategies with climate science. I thank the board for entrusting me with this position and look forward to working with this exceptional team.”

Luiz Amaral, CEO of the SBTi, said: “Last year I announced plans to expand and strengthen the SBTi’s executive leadership team to support this growth, and I’m delighted that Maria has now joined us. She brings with her extensive sustainability expertise, as well as strong corporate leadership experience. I know she’ll be a huge asset to the SBTi, helping us to accelerate the impact we’re already driving in the private sector.”

The SBTi said in a statement it will announce further additions to its executive board, leadership team and technical council in the coming months.

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