Asset Manager (Sustainability), Nature Based Carbon Strategy

Climate Asset Management is an independent investment firm co-owned by HSBC Asset Management (HSBC AM) and Pollination. HSBC AM is the asset management arm of HSBC, one of the world’s leading and most respected international financial institutions. Pollination is a climate change advisory and investment firm, solely focused on accelerating the transition to a net zero, climate resilient future and a world leader in finance, investment, technology, business, law, and policy.

Climate Asset Management is a purpose-oriented investment firm, unbound by legacy, which has established a series of natural capital funds, investing in a diverse range of activities that value, preserve, protect and enhance nature over the long-term, helping to address climate change, while delivering commercial risk-adjusted returns to investors. We aim to unlock natural capital investment opportunities at scale. Through our shareholders we leverage HSBC’s experience as the world’s leading bank for sustainable finance and Pollination’s deep, global expertise in natural capital, mainstreaming natural capital as an asset class.

Our Purpose

Our purpose is to secure a more climate-resilient, nature-positive and inclusive world through bold, scalable nature-based investment solutions.

Our Values

We have assembled, and continue to grow a highly motivated, multinational and multilingual team. We aim to reflect our four core values in everything we do:

• Passion: both in helping our clients achieve their objectives and in using our collective energy and expertise to help solve the big issues of the day
• Integrity: both in doing the right thing and in holding ourselves accountable
• Ambition: both in our optimism and our drive, aspiring to the highest quality standards and seeking to evolve and improve continually
• Inclusiveness: where we prioritise diversity, equality and inclusion, collaborating widely and connecting thoughts with technological innovation for breakthrough ideas and systemic change

Our Product Offer

We have three active investment product offerings, including:

1. A Natural Capital Fund, investing in sustainable agriculture, forestry and environmental assets in developed economies, seeking to optimise landscapes for production and ecosystem services;
2. A Nature Based Carbon Fund, offering investors access to global nature-based carbon projects at scale in developing economies that generate high integrity carbon credits.
3. Our Carbon Nature Fund which we manage on behalf of Apple’s Restore Fund, which is a unique blended strategy that combines the financial returns of the Natural Capital Fund with the impact of the Nature Based Carbon Fund.

We are continuing to fundraise for these strategies while deploying funds into projects around the world.

The opportunity

We are looking for an Asset Manager to oversee the management of our Nature Based Carbon Strategy (NBCS) funds – NBCF and CNF. The Asset Manager will report directly to the Senior Asset Manager and work in parallel with the investment team as well as CAM’s core functions, and with the fund portfolio/project partners. This role will focus on execution and oversight of assets in the NBCS portfolio, specifically improving the performance of project partners and providing both technical and operational guidance to ensure the Funds mandates are achieved.

The key responsibilities of the role are:

• Contract implementation and management
• Monitoring, Reporting and Data Management
• Due Diligence
• Stakeholder Engagement and Relationship Management
• Fund Governance
• Sustainability Management

These responsibilities are described in more detail below:

Contract Implementation and Management

• Manage on-the-ground projects partners and ensure the partner implements the agreements laid out in the contract. Support and supervise the activities and performance of the NBCS portfolio in alignment with CAM’s Asset Management Framework.
• Management of existing carbon credit contracts and ancillary agreements, ensuring adherence to project timelines, milestones, economics and contractual and regulatory obligations.
• Supporting completion of asset annual strategic plans, budgets, valuations, and completion of project milestones.
• Supporting asset management staff in procurement and supervision of third-party providers including: auditors, consultants and valuers.
• Responsible for overseeing review, standardization, implementation and iterative improvement of operational processes and systems for NBCS assets including for: knowledge sharing, software/technology, asset environmental, social and governance (ESGI) programs including impact targets and monitoring, strategic planning, timber/non timber forest products and carbon determination, volume and sales and marketing, project management, services procurement, valuation standards, asset communications, reporting (financial and non-financial) and industry/stakeholder engagement/advocacy.
• Oversee each portfolio asset’s risk register, identify mitigation plans for key risks in collaboration with project counterparties as appropriate, and report any key risks to the relevant CAM committees.
• Ensure portfolio assets and relevant counterparties are in compliance with applicable host country laws, international Anti-Bribery & Corruption Laws, and relevant ESG and Human rights standards. Collaborate with CAM ESG-I and Risk & Compliance teams to ensure adequate implementation of Action Plan items under each project’s contract.

Monitoring, Reporting and Data Management

• Prepare regular reports on project progress, ESG performance, and compliance status for NBCS and its stakeholders, investors, and standards bodies.
• Monitor progress against project targets, milestones.
• Ensure accurate and timely documentation of project-related activities, including contractual agreements, compliance records, and ESG data.
• Establish and manage efficient data flow from the asset level to the fund and company-level. Set up and/or strengthen fund management databases.
• Supporting operations teams to complete investor fund reports in collaboration with internal investor services and operations teams.
• Provide input on portfolio achievements for fundraising and communication purposes.

Stakeholder Engagement and Relationship Management

• Enhance and maintain NBCS’s strong relationships in compliance with all applicable laws with local project teams, project developers, government, consultants, and other relevant stakeholders to ensure smooth project implementation, monitoring and management.

Due Diligence

• Lead the due diligence on prospective asset managers and project partners.
• Support the NBCS Investment Teams throughout the investment process to ensure that the investment is optimally set up for the asset management team to execute the investment strategy. Provide input on project milestones and outputs, as well as governance structures.

Fund Governance

• Fulfil positions in asset-level governance bodies, including Steering Committees, Project Oversight Boards and Directorships.

Sustainability Management

• Ensure implementation of CAM’s ESG-I targets in the NBCS portfolio. Support the project partners in the development, implementation, monitoring and reporting of their ESG-I frameworks.
• Establish and/or strengthen and manage the internal ESG-I monitoring and reporting systems. Ensure robust data management and analysis is in place.
• Ensure alignment with EU SFDR, IFC PS, selected third party asset certifications and other frameworks outlined in Climate Asset Management’s Responsible Investment Policy.

Who we’re looking for

Candidates with the following proven experience:

• Experience working in project and/or asset management (5-10 years of relevant experience).
• Operational, hands-on, on-the-ground experience working in forestry and/or agriculture in emerging market economies including implementing IFC performance standards (5 years of relevant experience).
• Experience in sustainability management of land-based (carbon removal) project development and/or implementation (5 years of relevant experience).
• Experience in team leadership within a functional matrix structure.
• Experience in funds management in an institutional investment context.

Strengths, knowledge and skills:

• Proven project management skills, including the ability to manage multiple tasks, set priorities, and meet deadlines.
• Ability to adapt to change quickly and effectively. Comfortable working, and maintaining effective communications, in a variety of environments and with different levels of seniority.
• Ability to engage in negotiations project counterparties (both funds owned and third-party) including performance management and reporting.
• Ability to successfully execute forestry and/or agriculture and carbon projects.
• Understanding of funds management, forestry/agriculture and carbon commercial operations.
• Strong commercial skills.
• Good Microsoft Office skills including Outlook, Word, Excel.
• Excellent time management and organisational skills.
• Excellent written and verbal communication and stakeholder liaison skills.

Qualifications:

• Tertiary qualification in a relevant discipline.

Personal qualities:

• Self-motivated, positive attitude, ability to operate both independently and in a team.
• Creative analytical and problem-solving abilities, with a keen attention to detail.
• Ability and willingness to travel to projects throughout Africa, LATAM and Asia.

Applying with Climate Asset Management

Climate Asset Management is an equal opportunity employer committed to providing a working environment that embraces and values diversity and inclusion. We encourage people of all backgrounds to apply. If you have any support or access requirements, we encourage you to advise us at the time of application. We will then work with you to identify the best way to assist you through the recruitment process.

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