Volunteer Story - Maxine Wille, CFA

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Maxine Wille, CFA
Investment Analyst - Global Impact, J.O. Hambro Capital Management


Volunteer Group: ESG Panel
This group has developed CFA UK’s Certificate in ESG Investing. The first qualification of its kind in the UK has now been rolled out to eight other European CFA Societies and has had more than 350 graduates in the UK alone.


How have you helped develop the ESG qualifications?
Over the last 6 years, I have developed my career in ESG, starting at Federated Hermes EOS, where ESG analysis was my day-to-day task for several years. My experience from then stretches across developing impact frameworks to launching a next generation impact fund, within public equities later this year. I have brought all my ESG knowledge and expertise to my volunteer role on the ESG Panel and used it to develop an ESG qualification that is both practical and relevant.

What have you learnt from your volunteer peers?
Being part of the ESG panel gives me an opportunity to debate with other expert volunteers who have different perspectives. This forced us all to think clearly and from first principles to ensure the curriculum was robust. Given the variety of backgrounds on the panel I also gained a much better understanding of the ESG evolution and issues outside of public equities.

How is the work you are doing as a volunteer making an impact on the broader community?
I think that the ESG qualification has an important role to play in democratising ESG analysis skills and its language. As ESG analysis is often outsourced to a separate team within organisations, away from the investment decision, the qualification will enable more investment decision makers to appreciate the nuance, diversity and value of ESG analysis.