AltamarCAM Partners reinforces its ESG team with new appointments

AltamarCAM Partners, a global asset management firm focused on investing in private markets, has reinforced its ESG team as it continues to strengthen its commitment towards environmental, social and governance policies. Jörg Höller has been appointed Chief ESG Officer and Irene Rodríguez has joined AltamarCAM as ESG Vice President. Additionally, Miguel Zurita will increase his ESG dedication as chair the ESG Committee.

AltamarCAM’s ESG activity has seen significant developments in recent years, constantly improving the sustainability profile of the firm. AltamarCAM achieved carbon neutrality during two consecutive years (2019 and 2020), and this commitment was recently consolidated by becoming members of the TCFD and IIGCC. At a strategic level, a three-year action plan has been approved by the BoD, covering AltamarCAM’s entire ESG framework. Some of the actions have already been launched, such as a preliminary correlation analysis between portfolio returns and ESG performance, which has shown very promising initial results regarding the link between good ESG performance and investment returns. On the other hand, the social aspect continues to be one of the firm’s priorities, spearheaded by the Fundación Altamar, which keeps expanding its activities and presence across the group’s different geographies.

All of these efforts have led to recognition by top-level external entities such as the UNPRI, who gave the firm an outstanding rating of A+ in the latest assessment.

“We are convinced that these changes will help AltamarCAM further strengthen our relationships as a trusted advisor to our investors, by helping us engage with our investments in a way that allows us to generate better risk adjusted returns and offer new investment opportunities to our clients. The integration of ESG criteria is an essential part of our culture. We have worked very hard in this field in the past and will continue to do so by providing clear and transparent communication of our progress and achievements in this area, which is of vital importance in forging solid and lasting relationships with our investors” said Miguel Zurita.

Jörg Höller, CFA, current Chief Risk and ESG Officer of AltamarCAM’s Cologne office, has been appointed Chief ESG Officer of AltamarCAM. Jörg joined AltamarCAM in 2013. Prior to that he worked in the Risk Management Department of Oppenheim KAG, an asset manager in Cologne, where he was responsible for market and liquidity risk management of Public Equity-, Real Estate- Government-, Corporate and ABS-Funds. Before taking up his role in Risk Management in 2003, Jörg Höller began his career with a banking apprenticeship in 1988 and studied Business Administration at the University of Cologne (MBA). He is a member of the CFA-Institute and a CFA-Charterholder since 2004. He has been the key person in the successful establishment and implementation of ESG processes and an internal ESG rating model in CAM, becoming a reference for many investors. Based in Cologne, he will lead the ESG team across AltamarCAM, reporting to Miguel Zurita. The team includes six fully dedicated professionals and is supported by an ESG Steering Group that comprises eleven members from different backgrounds throughout the firm. The ESG Steering Group will ensure access to the best market intelligence and that the initiatives are implemented across AltamarCAM.

Irene Rodríguez has joined AltamarCAM as ESG Vice President and within the team is in charge of the execution of the ESG Strategy. She has acquired invaluable technical skills through both her education and professional experience, which during her international career she has further enhanced with a special focus on ESG. After obtaining her degree as a mechanical engineer specializing in energy in 2014, Irene Rodríguez graduated as Master of Science in Industrial Engineering from Universidad de Sevilla in 2016. She has worked in the field of sustainability both in the public and private sectors, having started her career at the French Ministry of Environment in Lyon (France). She also worked at Everis and participated as a researcher for ULB in Brussels (Belgium). During the last four years she was a member of the ESG & Climate Change department at PwC, where she held the role of Senior Consultant and performed a wide range of projects to help organizations transition to more responsible business models. Since the beginning of her career, Irene has combined working in leading institutions with contributions to various publications and collaboration with different organizations dedicated to the promotion of ESG.

ESG Committee

Miguel Zurita, member of AltamarCAM’s Board and co-Head of Private Equity, will increase his ESG dedication as chair the ESG Committee, which reports to the Board of Directors and supports the ESG team, providing strategic guidance and supporting ESG initiatives across the firm. Claudio Aguirre, José Luis Molina, Marcel Rafart, Andreas Schmidt, Alexis von Dziembowski and Jörg Höller are the members of the ESG Committee.

Miguel Zurita will keep his current responsibilities as co-Head of Private Equity, and as Chairman of the ESG Committee will lead the strategic process on ESG matters. In particular, he will ensure that the investment teams actively contribute to the increasing relevance of ESG principles in investment decisions where, given AltamarCAM’s over 16 bn of AUMs and AUDs, the firm can make a greater impact towards responsible and sustainable development. He will also lead and coordinate all the internal and external initiatives of the firm related to ESG.