People moves

IA adds head of sustainability and responsible investment role

Carol Thomas rejoins from M&G

The Investment Association (IA) has appointed Carol Thomas to a newly-created role of head of sustainability and responsible investment.

Thomas will be responsible for leading the IA’s work and engagement on all issues related to sustainability and responsible investment, including the design and implementation of sustainable finance rules in the UK, and championing the industry’s contribution to climate action.

She rejoined the IA at the start of December, having previously held the position of head of asset management policy at M&G. Prior to this, she spent four years at the IA in the role of retail markets specialist, covering all issues related to the regulation and distribution of retail funds in the UK and across the EU, including leading the IA’s work to assist members with the implementation of Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation. Thomas started her career in EU regulatory affairs in Brussels, before joining the Financial Services Authority in 2010.

Galina Dimitrova, director for investment and capital markets at the IA, said: “This is a pivotal time for the investment management industry as we work with the regulator and government to help investors navigate the rapidly evolving and growing sustainability and responsible investment landscape. Carol’s extensive UK and EU policy experience and industry expertise will enable her to successfully support our members with the busy regulatory agenda and champion the industry’s priorities in this area.”

Thomas added: “Sustainability and responsible investment has been one of the standout trends in recent years, with investors placing almost £5.5bn into responsible investment funds in the first three-quarters of this year alone. I look forward to working with our members, the regulator and policymakers, to ensure that this area of the funds market continues to flourish and so that investors are able to understand how their money is meeting both their financial and non-financial goals.”    

AXA hires sustainability coordinator and ESG analyst

Clément Bultheel and Benjamin Jacot join firm

AXA Investment Managers has made two sustainability hires.

Clément Bultheel joins the firm from Quantis and has been appointed sustainability coordinator based in Paris. Reporting to head of sustainability coordination and governance ClémenceHumeau, Bultheel will be responsible for working on AXA’s sustainability policies.

Benjamin Jacot takes on the role of ESG quantitative analyst, reporting to head of responsible investment solutions, models and tools Yolande Poulou. Jacot joins from La Française and will be in charge of developing climate metrics and models to assess physical and transition risk, portfolios alignment to climate scenarios.

UKSIF appoints Man Group ESG research head as chair

Micheal Meehan stepping down after three years

Jason Mitchell, head of responsible investment research at Man Group, has been appointed chair of the UK Sustainable Investment and Finance Association (UKSIF).

Having previously worked on the board, he steps up to replace Michael Meehan, managing partner at TCR Innovations, who announced his departure in June after three years to move to Canada.

Mitchell (pictured) has been head of responsible investment research at Man Group for four and a half years, and was previously sustainability strategist and portfolio manager at the firm.

As chair, he will work closely with UKSIF CEO James Alexander to ensure the board’s decisions are implemented and the organisation’s strategic goals are met.

“Jason is a hugely respected thought leader on sustainable finance and investment, and will bring enormous expertise to the organisation and our membership,” Alexander said.

“I’m looking forward to working closely with Jason and the whole board to advance UKSIF’s mission and drive forward the financial services industry’s role in advancing the UK’s sustainable future.

“I would like to extend my appreciation also to our outgoing chair, Michael Meehan, for his contributions and service to UKSIF over many years.”

Janus Henderson hires AB’s chief responsibility officer

Michelle Dunstan worked at AB for 18 years

Michelle Dunstan has left her role as chief responsibility officer at AllianceBernstein (AB) to take up the same role at Janus Henderson.

Dunstan worked at AB for 18 years in a variety of roles including as global equities portfolio manager and senior research analyst, and most recently chief responsibility officer.

At Janus Henderson she will be responsible for overseeing the firm’s corporate responsibility and responsible investing efforts, reporting to Ali Dibadj, Janus Henderson’s CEO.

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Based in the US, Dunstan will work closely with the existing ESG teams on their RI approaches and frameworks.

Dibadj said: “I’ve known Michelle for many years; she is a hugely talented and dynamic figure. Michelle augments our existing capabilities with her experience and leadership skills and will further embed corporate responsibility and responsible investing capabilities across our company. I know she will be an effective advocate for appropriate sustainability work both within the company and in the industry at large.”

Dunstan added: “It is an exciting time of great change and positive momentum – both for Janus Henderson and for responsibility. Janus Henderson’s rich history of providing differentiated insights and disciplined investments places it well to lead in developing both the ESG thought leadership and the portfolio solutions that will help our clients achieve their goals. I look forward to working with Janus Henderson’s existing talented teams to continue to advance and strengthen the organisation on its responsibility journey.”

Update

At AB, Erin Bigley has been named the firm’s new chief responsibility officer overseeing the firm’s responsible investing strategy, extensive research, engagement, stewardship activities, corporate responsibility, and continued integration of responsible investing into key strategic decisions.

She has worked at AB for 20 years most recently as the head of fixed income responsible investing and having served as a founding member of the firm’s Responsible Investment Steering Committee.

“Erin has served as an integral and incredibly effective leader of our fixed income and responsible investing efforts at AllianceBernstein,” said Seth Bernstein, president and CEO at AB. “Erin’s extensive industry knowledge and passion for responsibility, combined with her more than 20 years of leadership and investment experience at the firm, will only enhance AB’s commitment to responsibility on behalf of our clients, colleagues, and communities.”

First Sentier appoints Turner as global head of responsible investment

Made four other appointments to bolster RI team

First Sentier Investors has announced Kate Turner as its global head of responsible investment, as Will Oulton is set to retire at the end of the year.

Based in Sydney, Turner has worked within the investment and responsible investment team over the past three years supporting integration of ESG considerations into processes and engaging clients and stakeholders.

The group has also made four new hires to bolster the team; Finian Power joins as head of ESG policy and regulation having previously held the role of head of investment management at First Sentier’s Dublin office, while Bjorn De Smedt, Rhys Foulkes and Belinda White have joined as responsible investment specialists.

CEO Mark Steinberg commented: “I would like to personally thank Will for his significant contribution to the business and to the industry over the last 10 years. During this time, he helped set up the responsible Investment team and more recently played a central role in establishing the First Sentier MUFG Sustainable Investment Institute. Pleasingly, he will remain actively engaged with FSI in a non-executive/consultancy capacity.

“I am delighted to internally appoint Kate as successor to this important role. Along with our new appointments, our global RI team is now well-positioned to advise on increasingly complex ESG regulations, and work with investment teams on critical issues including climate change, human rights and modern slavery, diversity and biodiversity – all with the aim of driving long-term investment performance and helping address some of society’s significant challenges,” Steinberg added.

PGIM adds to DEI team

Natalie Gill joins for newly created role

PGIM has appointed Natalie Gill (pictured) to the newly-created role of vice president of DEI strategy and industry engagement in the London office.

Reporting to Kathy Sayko, PGIM’s chief DEI officer, Gill will drive the group’s DEI strategy, looking at best practice and innovation from across financial services. She will expand PGIM’s diversity partnerships and develop the global research and thought leadership in the area.

Gill previously worked at Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation where she was head of diversity and inclusion, EMEA, and was also inclusion and diversity lead at Santander.

Sayko commented: “We are committed to creating a fully inclusive culture, where all employees feel empowered to bring their authentic selves to work. At the same time, given our size and global footprint, we have an opportunity — and a responsibility — to leverage our reach to advance social justice and equity more broadly.

“Natalie has been an advocate for DEI for multiple decades, playing a key role in driving impact at the firms she has worked for as well as across the finance and asset management sector more broadly. We are thrilled to welcome her to the PGIM team and are excited about the many ways her experience, passion and deep knowledge can ensure we continue to offer our people a diverse and inclusive environment and to create a more equitable industry, where all people can thrive.”

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