Financial Sector Supplement to the Natural Capital Protocol

Project Manager

Location: UK, with regular trips to London/Oxford

Tenure: 3 days a week, for 12 months

Salary: Competitive for not-for-profit

Context

Financial institutions (FIs) are looking to better understand the natural capital risks, opportunities and impacts associated with their direct operations, and their investment, lending or insurance portfolios as well as their exposure to sectoral and sovereign natural capital risks.

The Natural Capital Coalition, the Natural Capital Declaration (NCD), and the Dutch Association of Investors for Sustainable Development (VBDO) have agreed to jointly produce a Finance Sector Supplement to the Natural Capital Protocol (recently launched by the Coalition) over the next 12 months.

The objective of the Supplement is to provide an initial framework, a state of play and tools for FIs (lenders, investors, insurers and rating agencies). It will be specifically guided by FI sector needs focussing on what they want to know to start approaching natural capital impacts and dependencies, to help them understand the steps and considerations for incorporating these issues into their investment and lending decisions, and highlight where to find resources to practically embed natural capital in FI decision making and risk assessment.

The role

The Natural Capital Declaration (through GCP or on a freelance basis) is recruiting a Project Manager 3 days a week, for a year, to support the development of the Financial Sector Supplement (FSS), as introduced above.

This is an excellent opportunity to work at the heart of a ground-breaking international project with financial institutions seeking to build capacity and accelerate the understanding and systematic integration of natural capital risks and opportunities across the sector.

Key responsibilities

Project management:

  • Coordinate and manage the day-to-day activities of the FSS project, in close collaboration with NCD Programme Head. Including:
  • managing contracts and deliverables from sub-contractors & project partners
  • tracking progress in delivering the work plan and expenditure against the budget, updating the project work plan and budget as required
  • reporting on monthly project progress to NCD Programme Head
  • Day-to-day management of external consultants to support project implementation and preparations for launch, training and uptake
  • Support planning and co-ordination across NCD projects, helping to manage high quality and timely outputs. Support and maintain internal project management and information systems and processes
  • Co-ordinate day-to-day engagement with project partners to foster a collaborative, motivating and effective working environment, liaising closely with GCP and UNEP FI staff and consultants. Maintain close relationships with financial institutions and project team as well as related stakeholders (e g. NCD supporters including other NGOs) to develop, maintain and deliver against project plans
  • Mediate conflicts, manage risk and document project lessons learned, escalating and resolving project problems prior to becoming issues. Monitor burn rate against sub-contracted hours and expenses and escalate potential overruns
  • Managing internal and external stakeholder consultations on draft project outputs.
  • Oversee integration of environmental factors into credit risk analysis

Represent NCD and co-ordinate workshops and events:

  • Represent NCD and co-ordinate international workshops (e.g. at UNEP-FI Global Roundtable in Dubai on 26th October 2016) in collaboration with the FSS Steering Group
  • Provide administrative and logistical support
  • International travel (on an adhoc basis)

Key experience and skills

Essential:

  • Excellent writing, editing and verbal communication skills; including proven track record in producing high quality reports, guidance, policy briefs and digital content.
  • Demonstrable knowledge of environmental and social risk management in banking and/or consideration of environmental, social and governance issues in investment/insurance.
  • Experience of managing complex multi-stakeholder projects in the ESG space
  • Relevant post-graduate degree/professional qualifications (e.g. finance, economics, journalism, or similar).
  • Strong organisational skills, and ability to work as part of a team to tight deadlines

Desirable:

  • Previous experience working in the insurance or asset management industry