About the PRI

The PRI is the world’s leading proponent of responsible investment. It works to understand the investment implications of environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors and to support its international network of investor signatories in incorporating these factors into their investment and ownership decisions. The PRI acts in the long-term interests of its signatories, of the financial markets and economies in which they operate and ultimately of the environment and society as a whole. The PRI is truly independent. It encourages investors to use responsible investment to enhance returns and better manage risks but does not operate for its own profit; it engages with global policymakers but is not associated with any government; it is supported by, but not part of, the United Nations.

Working at the PRI provides an opportunity to engage with highly motivated, culturally diverse professionals on a wide range of cutting-edge issues, such as income inequality through the lens of sustainable finance. The PRI provides scope for development at all levels with opportunities for project leadership and management working alongside some of the most influential signatories and leaders across financial markets and economies.  In combination with a supportive culture that encourages continuous learning and flexible working policies, PRI is a highly engaging place to work on truly transformative issues.

The PRI Australia and New Zealand Relationship Manager will join a growing regional team in Asia Pacific, with the flexibility to be based in Sydney or Melbourne.

The candidate will have the opportunity to engage with the largest and most influential investors in Australia and New Zealand, often with senior personnel (CIOs, Head of ESG, board of Trustees) the opportunity to develop deep practical expertise in ESG issues, sustainable finance and investment practices.

You must be self-motivated, whilst you will have no direct reports the management piece of this roles applies to managing internal and external stakeholders. You will have a willingness to take the lead on initiatives and you want to make a difference in real world challenges like climate change, economic inequality and human right abuses through the levers of the capital markets and economic system.

Job description

The successful candidate will be part of the Australasia Signatory Relations (SR) team, currently composed of six members. The specialist will be working towards enhancing Responsible Investment awareness and providing investors with the tools to implement responsible investment practices in their investment process in Australia and New Zealand.

The role involves acting as signatories first day to day contact and resolving signatory issues in an accurate and timely manner, whilst proactively developing and maintaining strong relationships with strategic signatories. There will be regular domestic and occasional international travel primarily for signatory meetings, industry events and internal meetings. The successful candidate will work closely with other PRI colleagues in the UK.

Core Responsibilities:

• Awareness: raising awareness about the materiality of ESG issues for investment processes among asset owners, investment managers and service providers. 

• Signatory servicing and Stakeholder relationships: Enhance Australia and New Zealand signatory implementation and satisfaction, through successful new signatory on-boarding, signatory review meetings, reporting and assessment sessions, development sessions and other PRI-supported events.  Strengthen relationships with key targeted stakeholders in Australia and New Zealand, and support the development of responsible investment locally.

• Other projects: Assist on strategic and/or ad hoc projects that are consistent with overall Signatory Relations team or PRI objectives as needed.

• Events: Represent PRI at relevant events to help raise the organisation’s profile in Australia and New Zealand and help showcase relevant recent research, initiatives and guides.

• Signatory Relations team: Aid overall team effectiveness by contributing to Signatory Relations bi-monthly team meetings, for example with respect to projects and initiatives that asset owners are working on.

• Collaboration with other PRI teams: Develop strong working relationships with PRI’s other teams on Australasia market-related issues, especially Reporting & Assessment, Investment Practices and Policy & Research.

PRI expects roles at a ‘Specialist level’ within the organisation to demonstrate skills across the following core competencies:

Core Competencies:

Analytical

•Proactively offers impartial specialist knowledge, insights or input

•Uses business/ specialist knowledge and analysis to identify issues, applying fact-based insight to develop and evaluate solutions or solve issues

•Maintains a professional and impartial stance in assessing all information which feeds into decision making

•Balances rigour with pragmatism in conducting analyses that are fit for purpose

•Effectively reviews and quality-checks all analyses

Business Awareness

Focuses on maximising Signatory or operational value and driving PRI outcomes

•Actively keeps up to date with developments both within the organisation and within area of specialism

•Balances the internal needs of the PRI and that of Signatory Organisations to deliver outputs

•Understands how own area of specialism drives value to the PRI and meets its mission

Collaborative

•Builds consensus and trust with all that engage with

•Is responsive to feedback proactively following up to ensure any issues are resolved

•Where requested, engages with colleagues to gain a broader understanding of issues and seeks to respond to or resolve them

•Provides specialist knowledge and insights to colleagues where requested

Communicative

•Translates specialist information or provides technical expertise in a clear and understandable format

•Clarifies matters by absorbing and understanding relevant information and feeding them back in concise terms

•Uses effective listening and questioning to enhance understanding of complex issues

•Engages the recipient using their language, tailoring communication style for the audience

Developmental

•Actively seeks opportunities to enhance specialist knowledge/ experience

•Constantly reviews own work with the aim of improving outputs

•Applies knowledge or experience to question practices and suggest alternatives

•Actively seeks and shares feedback wherever possible, as a means of improvement

•Uses best practice identified through external networks or evolutions in the field of specialism

Structured

•Has a strong sense of execution and delivery, working to agreed deadlines, involving relevant colleagues and allowing enough time for review and quality assurance

•Regularly monitors and reports on progress of work, providing regular updates as appropriate

•Takes a methodical approach to how specialist or technical knowledge is acquired and, distributed (where necessary)

•Captures knowledge at the end of each project/ process/activity, to use and share

Technical Competencies & Requirements:

• Experience in the asset management and/or financial sector, preferably within the Asset Owner community.

• Strong interest in responsible investment, sustainability, environmental, social and governance issues, and their overall impact on long term investment outcomes and society.

• Client servicing and relationship management skills, preferably within the financial sector, or within other service-based industries, such as investment consulting.

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills. The ability to foster an inclusive working environment

• Good team player, with experience working internationally and a strong partnership ethos; willingness to work both independently and closely with London-based colleagues to deliver mutually agreed solutions supporting PRI’s agenda.

• Minimum of a bachelor’s degree or equivalent qualification; Master’s degree in one or more relevant fields and/or a recognised investment qualification preferable.

• At least intermediate knowledge of relevant IT (e.g. Excel, Word, PowerPoint and/or Salesforce).