RI People & Appointments, March 7: VBDO, West Midlands Pension Fund, Doughty Hanson, ClearlySo

Angélique Laskewitz, the former Fortis Bank and BNP Paribas Fortis executive who founded her own consulting firm, has been appointed Managing Director of the Dutch Association for Sustainable Investors (VBDO), replacing former director Giuseppe van der Helm.

Leanne Clements, Responsible Investment Officer of the £11.5bn (€14.8bn) West Midlands Pension Fund, has left to “pursue a new opportunity” after 21 months in the role. Geik Drever, West Midlands Pension Fund Strategic Director, said: “Leanne is a highly regarded member of staff and we wish her well. The Fund remains committed to responsible investment and with credit to Leanne now have a number of policies, systems, and processes in place to deal with responsible investment and ESG topics.”

Tracy Vegro has been appointed Executive Director of Strategy & Resources at the Financial Reporting Council (FRC), the UK’s financial watchdog. She is a senior civil servant who has just concluded a secondment at the Co-operative Group where she worked on governance reforms following Lord Myners’ Review of the bank.

Anne Simpson, Investment Director, Global Governance at Californian pension giant CalPERS, has been named as a member of the US Public Company Accounting Oversight Board’s Investor Advisory Group. Bess Joffe (TIAA–CREF); Amy McGarrity (Colorado Public Employees’ Retirement Association); and, Peter H. Nachtwey (Legg Mason, Inc.) have also been named members of the group that will inform the work of the auditing regulatory body.

Krysta Harden, Deputy Secretary of the US Department of Agriculture, has been appointed Vice President of Public Policy and Chief Sustainability Officer at US industrial group DuPont. Harden, who replaces Linda Fisher in the role, will be responsible for leading the firm’s public policy and sustainability activities.

Kathleen Van Brempt, a Belgian Socialist & Democrat MEP, has been elected as Chair of the European Parliament’s committee into Emission Measurements in the Automotive Sector (EMIS). Van Brempt has been mandated to investigate the alleged failures of the Commission in relation to the recent emissions scandal.

Tor Svensen, Group Executive Vice President at Olso-based DNV GL, the verification company that is involved in certifying green bonds, is to retire after 23 years with the firm. Svensen leaves to become a professor at the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow.

Joe Mallin, former Managing Director at Pearl Meyer & Partners, has joined Atlanta-based executive compensation consultancy Pay Governance.Adam Black has left his role as Head of Sustainability at Doughty Hanson, the London-based private equity firm, to join Coller Capital, a private equity rival, as its Head of ESG & Sustainability. Black had been with Doughty Hanson for almost eight years leading its responsible investment. Coller Capital has been raising its profile in ESG. Jeremy Coller, founder and chief investment officer at the secondaries buyout firm he founded in 1990, is championing the Farm Animal Investment Risk & Return (FAIRR) campaign, which aims to put animal welfare on the ESG agenda, and front and centre of the United Nations-supported Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI).

Matthew Vickerstaff, former Global Head of Structured Finance at French bank Societe Generale has been named Head of Investment Banking at the UK based impact investment intermediary ClearlySo. Vickerstaff will take overall responsibility for established investment banking and capital raising activities. ClearlySo’s recently announced its capital raising activities for its clients has surpassed £100m. Link

Nicolai Ørnstrup Pilehave, Chief Risk Officer at Danish asset manager, Nordea, will join Danish pension scheme PKA (€31.5bn) as its new Chief Financial Officer. Ørnstrup Pilehave will take up his new role from June 2016. PKA recently announced a joint investment with LEGO of DKK6.6bn in a UK wind park.

Torben Carlsen, Chief Financial Officer at Denmark-based shipping firm, DFDS, has been named Chairman of the Copenhagen Infrastructure II fund’s investment committee. Carlsen replaces Bjarne Graven Larsen at the €2bn fund, who has been appointed Chief Investment Officer of the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan.

Corianne van de Ligt, Policy Advisor at PensionsEurope, has announced her decision to leave the body that represents European pension fund associations. Van de Ligt leaves to take up a position at ABN Amro Bank in the Netherlands. PensionsEurope is actively recruiting for van de Ligt’s replacement.

Jan Christiaan Hellendoorn, former Vice President, Communications at Dutch supermarket chain, Albert Heijn, has been appointed Head of Corporate Communications at ABP, the €356bn Dutch civil service pension scheme. Hellendoorn will be responsible for communications with the pension fund’s stakeholders, politicians and the media.

PSP Investments, one of Canada’s largest pension investment managers, with C$112bn in assets under management, is looking to recruit a Senior Manager, Responsible Investment to contribute to the integration of ESG factors in its investment activities.