Mercer has appointed Aled Jones as Head of Responsible Investment (RI) for Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA). Based in London, Mr Jones will start his new role with immediate effect. With four of its 15 team members based in EMEA, Mercer’s RI group has provided advice to some 120 clients with assets of over $2.5 trillion.
Aled Jones joined Mercer’s RI group as a consultant in 2011. Before joining Mercer, he worked for the London Pension Fund Authority (LPFA) where he oversaw the development and implementation of the Fund’s RI strategy. Prior to this, Mr Jones worked at The Pension Protection Fund, developing the Fund’s first RI strategy, ensuring consistency between the existing investment strategy and the Fund’s overall objectives. Mr Jones has worked in RI for over a decade at leading firms and institutions, including the specialist ESG research firm Innovest and the RI teams at Jupiter Asset Management Plc and F&C Investments. During that time Mr Jones has also served on the Board of UKSIF* and the Executive Committee of the Local Authority Pension Fund Forum.
Jane Ambachtsheer, Global Head of Responsible Investment at Mercer, said: "We are delighted to name Aled as the Head of Responsible Investment for EMEA. Aled brings a wealth of knowledge and practical hands on experience to the role, particularly in terms of having developed and implemented approaches to strengthen responsible ownership and stewardship practices in a pension fund.”
“I am delighted to take on this role at an important time for asset owners,” said Mr Jones. “Corporate governance concerns continue to challenge investors and pose investment risks that need to be monitored and managed. The broader industry debate around ‘fairer capitalism’ is also prompting trustees and other long-term investors to review expectations of their investment managers and of investee companies. As a result Mercer is seeing increased demand for advice and support on developing and implementing responsible and sustainable investment strategies. We have a very high calibre group of people here in London, and I’m delighted to take on the role of leading the EMEA team in these exciting and challenging times.”
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