Navigating the Dynamic Landscape of Sustainable Investing: A Journey of Discovery and Impact

Embarking on the Sustainable Investing Research Consulting project has proven to be an exhilarating journey for me so far. With three years of prior experience as a sustainable investing consultant before joining SIPA, the realm of sustainable investing is familiar territory. Consequently, when the course commenced, I was feeling confident. Yet, the multitude of challenges encountered by me and my team within just two weeks of initiating the project not only caught me off guard but also reignited my passion for this field; the dynamic nature of sustainability, coupled with the distinctiveness of each client and their approach to sustainability, ensures that every project presents novel challenges.

Our client holds significant standing in the industry as one of the leading alternative asset management firms in Latin America, boasting over three decades of operations and investments across various asset classes. Our role as consultants is to examine key investments spanning the six verticals within the client's private equity and infrastructure portfolios, advising them on the impact generated by these investments. Hence, my team and I have committed to conducting exhaustive research, which involves delving deeply into the six verticals, through thorough landscape analyses, and subsequently mapping the impact metrics that are relevant for our client. We are dedicated to using credible sources of information for the same such as the research conducted by the Global Impact Investing Network and ImpactAlpha, the WEF Stakeholder Capitalism Metrics, impact reports of other asset managers with investments in similar verticals, etc. Additionally, we will study the sustainability standards and regulations that are pertinent to our client, pinpoint any data gaps, and address them through comprehensive surveys and interviews with the portfolio companies. The culmination of our efforts will result in a tool enabling our client to assess and quantify the impact of their portfolio, alongside a report illustrating the current impact, to be presented at a crucial investment forum in April which will be attended by many of the client’s key stakeholders.

The project’s intricacies became apparent to us very early on in the project. However, before we could delineate our project plan and scope, we encountered three main challenges. Initially, defining the project's scope proved challenging, as the client's expectations were not fully elucidated. It took several discussions to clarify the project's scope with the client to ensure that their expectations were aligned with the deliverables that we would propose. Secondly, despite the enthusiasm of our primary client contact for impact investing, resistance from the Board of Directors emphasized to us how important it would be for us to adhere to timelines so that we deliver tangible results at the investment forum. Hence, we had to carefully craft a feasible timeline with plausible milestones along the way. Lastly, while each one of us in the team brings expertise from diverse backgrounds, we are unfamiliar with the client’s specific verticals, which necessitated us to carefully allocate tasks amongst ourselves so that we can build an adequate knowledge of the client’s portfolio over the next few months.

Fortunately, participation in the SIRI Skills Workshop on Management Consulting in Sustainable Investing has proved immensely valuable for us. Insights that we gleaned from McKinsey consultants and the utilization of the Impact Statement framework have enabled us to define the project scope in alignment with the client's objectives. I am confident that adopting the GAME approach for meetings will facilitate constructive discussions, ensuring alignment with the client, as well as project progression going forward. Additionally, constant guidance from an expert in the field, Professor Minard, has further enriched our understanding and bolstered our project's direction.

I am also grateful to my team for capitalizing on our strengths and fostering a collaborative environment conducive to growth. Each one of us ensuring a collective understanding of the project has ensured cohesion within the team. Moreover, the integration of this real-life project into our academic curriculum has allowed us to tap into the expertise of peers and faculty at SIPA, a resource we will continue to utilize as we progress to the next phase of our project, leveraging our research to develop surveys and the impact identification tool. With our research serving as the foundation, we are committed to delivering actionable insights that will drive positive change. To conclude, I am thrilled to be a part of this project because our client is committed to supporting and empowering underserved communities in Latin America through the investments they make, and it brings me great joy to have the opportunity to contribute to this meaningful endeavor in some capacity.