GLOBAL - Watson Wyatt has persuaded Paul Richards, head of consultant relations (ex-US) at Goldman Sachs, to join its global manager research team as a ‘sustainability' expert.
Richards was a managing director at Goldman until recently, and prior to this was head of UK institutional business at ISIS and head of manager research at rival consultancy Aon.
He now joins Watson Wyatt as senior investment consultant, however, to work alongside Jane Goodland, who recently also joined from HSBC, as part of the firm's widening global research initiative on sustainability in institutional investment.
More specifically, this team looks at the impact of environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues on long-term investment, manager selection and how it influences portfolio construction.
That said, Richards' role is varied so he will also work with the company's Thinking Ahead Group, led by Roger Urwin and David Hoile's asset research team, said Paul Trickett, European head of Investment Consulting at Watson Wyatt, because issues such as ESG are gaining momentum within pension fund investments.
"Sustainable investment is no longer a peripheral matter, it is becoming an increasingly important part of assessing the value and future profitability of a company, alongside its financial statements," said Trickett.
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