People Moves

AllianceBernstein names new chief responsibility officer

Erin Bigley has been with the company for more than 20 years

AllianceBernstein has promoted a new chief responsibility officer to replace Michelle Dunstan, who has left the firm.

Erin Bigley (pictured), who has overseen the company’s responsible investing, was named to the post, AllianceBernstein announced on Wednesday. Dunstan “departed the firm to pursue an external opportunity,” the firm stated.

“Erin has served as an integral and incredibly effective leader of our fixed income and responsible investing efforts at AllianceBernstein,” president and CEO Seth Bernstein said in the announcement. Berstein cited Bigley’s “extensive industry knowledge and passion for responsibility, combined with her more than 20 years of leadership and investment experience at the firm.”

In the role, Bigley oversees AllianceBernstein’s responsible investment strategy, research, engagement, stewardship, corporate responsibility and further integration of responsible investing, the firm stated.

AllianceBernstein is headquartered in Nashville, although Bigley’s position is based in New York City.

Dunstan had been in the role for more than a year and prior to that was the firm’s global head of responsible investing. She had been at the company since 2004.

Aon hires responsible investing head

David Ingram joins from Wilshire

Aon has hired a head of responsible investing, the firm announced on Wednesday.

Filling that role is Daniel Ingram, who most recently was a senior vice-president at Wilshire, where he worked for five years.

In the role at Aon, Ingram will work with institutional clients, providing guidance on ESG risks and investment managers and “implement impactful portfolios across traditional and alternative asset classes”, the firm stated.

In a statement, Ingram noted that he is joining the firm “at a time when asset owners require more help than ever developing simple and practical ESG action steps”.

He will report to Heather Myers, who chairs the firm’s US investment committee and is head of nonprofit solutions.

In the role until May was Meredith Jones, who is now the ESG practice leader at EY. Aon had announced its environmental and social corporate consulting team in February 2020, which Jones had led.

Putnam hires ESG leader from BofA

Jackie VanderBrug will help expand the company's sustainability efforts

Putnam Investments has hired a sustainable investment leader from Bank of America and Merrill Lynch for a new high-level role at the firm.

Jackie VanderBrug has been appointed Putnam’s head of sustainability strategy, reporting to CEO Robert Reynolds, the company announced today. Most recently, VanderBrug was head of sustainable and impact investment strategy in the chief investment office at Merrill and Bank of America Private Bank, a position she has held since 2018.

VanderBrug is on the company’s operating committee and “will lead a host of key ESG-focused business functions, such as stewardship, engagement and partnerships, and ESG strategy and integration,” Putnam stated. She will work alongside the company’s other sustainability-focused leaders: Katherine Collins, head of sustainable investing; and Catherine Saunders, head of corporate sustainability.

VanderBrug “will play an integral role in further expanding our firm’s focus in the critical realm of sustainability,” Reynolds added in the announcement. “At a time when ESG-related questions are rising in complexity and intensity, we are focused on further strengthening our investment-centric approach to these issues.”

Like other fund providers, Putnam has been expanding the ESG-themed products in its lineup.

This year, the firm has prepped or launched several ESG ETFs, and next year it plans to repackage its existing RetirementReady target-date series as the Putnam Sustainable Retirement Funds.

Calvert snags engagement exec from Federated Hermes

Youmans has a research background, with stints at Harvard and MIT

Calvert Research and Management has hired an executive director of engagement from Federated Hermes’ EOS team, the company announced Thursday.

Tim Youmans, who had been with Federated Hermes since 2018, is based in Boston and reports to Calvert Head of Engagement John Wilson.

In the role, Youmans is tasked with building relationships with firms in the company’s portfolios and working with them to improve ESG performance, according to the announcement.

Prior to working at Federated Hermes, Youmans was a research scholar at Harvard Business School and MIT Sloan School of Management’s family office program.

“Tim’s extensive background in responsible investing advocacy and work as a research scholar establish him as a force for positive change,” Wilson said in the company’s announcement. “Tim built a career leading businesses forward by identifying material changes that propel growth and optimize company infrastructure and culture to allow them to thrive over the long term.”

Calvert hires head of institutional business

Von Hughes most recently was a partner at Paamco Prisma

Calvert Research and Management has hired a leader for its institutional business, the company announced Thursday.

For the new position, the firm brought on Von Hughes, who most recently was a partner at Paamco Prisma, where he served as global head of strategic advisory and client acquisition.

Hughes, who’s based in New York City, reports to Calvert CEO John Streur.

His responsibilities include “expanding Calvert’s institutional offering, cultivating deeper partnerships across the institutional marketplace, evaluating the growth prospects for new products and services and broadening Calvert’s impact through educational initiatives,” the company said in its announcement.

“Von is an accomplished leader and established expert in corporate governance and pensions and has a track record of success building and shaping institutional platforms,” Streur said in the announcement. “His deep experience in the asset management industry extends across disciplines and uniquely positions him to advance Calvert’s global leadership by delivering impact alpha through the framework of Calvert’s Principles for Responsible Investment as investor needs evolve.”

The need for the new leadership role follows increased demand for responsible investing, particularly among institutional clients, the company said. Recently, Calvert has expanded its core research and management teams, and has introduced investment strategies to the European market, it noted.

Prior to his work at Paamco Prisma, Hughes was a vice president at Goldman Sachs in the equity capital markets group. He is also an adjunct professor at Columbia Business School, teaching a course in public pensions and retirement security.

Nuveen hires ESG leader from Janus Henderson

Kelly Hagg joins as the company puts more resources into responsible investing

Nuveen has established a new leadership role within its responsible investing ranks, hiring Kelly Hagg from Janus Henderson, the company announced Wednesday.

Previously, Hagg had been global head of product strategy and ESG for distribution at Janus Henderson, where he had been for 19 years.

In the new position at Nuveen, Hagg is head of responsible investing strategy and solutions, “responsible for driving firm-wide coordination and alignment of resources in support of responsible investing commercialization initiatives,” the company said in an internal memo that was shared with the press.

“Kelly will also lead the delivery of distinct, value-added capabilities that create stronger relationships with existing clients while attracting new ones and expanding market share.”

Hagg is Based in Denver and reports to Nuveen’s global head of responsible investing, Amy O’Brien. He started at Nuveen Aug. 8.

At Janus Henderson, Hagg focused on product opportunities and building the company’s ESG business, though he was also previously an assistant general counsel at the firm. Earlier this year, Hagg spoke with ESG Clarity about being on board while Janus Henderson first began exploring sustainable investing. The company launched five actively managed sustainability-themed ETFs last year.

Nuveen’s responsible investing business has been an area of growth at the company, and it has increased its focus on it over the past year, O’Brien said in the memo. That has included new resources from the company’s legal, risk and risk departments as well as investment teams and TIAA’s retirement business, O’Brien stated.

In a statement, Janus Henderson thanked Hagg for this time at the company, confirming that his departure was effective Aug. 3.

“Over the past several weeks, Kelly has ensured a thorough transition of his role to various members of the product team, who will take on his responsibilities moving forward in the near term,” the firm stated. “Long-term plans for the position are still under consideration. We are confident that with the breadth of experience and expertise across our product team, we will see no disruption to our cohesive approach to ESG or product strategy.”

This story was updated to include the above statement from Janus Henderson.

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