Ania Manczyk
Impact Alternatives Investment Leader
Adopting an impact investing approach
We build robust impact investment strategies that seek to deliver positive change and strong returns. We can help you choose your impact themes, design a portfolio and measure your impact in line with your sustainability goals. We can support you in taking an innovative approach to impact investment, helping you uncover fresh ideas across the spectrum of asset classes.
Driving real-world outcomes with impact investing
The World Economic Forum’s Global Risks Report, developed in collaboration with MarshMcLennan, provides an annual reminder of the fundamental interconnections and challenges between economic systems and the world’s troubled natural ecosystems.
More investors are opting to go beyond ESG considerations to support positive change through impact investing. Impact investors connect the pursuit of risk-adjusted returns with the delivery of positive real-world outcomes, often connected to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Each SDG provides a range of impact investment targets. For example, climate action is a key target that motivates allocations to renewable energy or green buildings.
Impact investing targets underserved areas of the global economy. For example, it aims to help meet the needs of the “bottom billion,” and addresses critical global problems such as climate change.
Creating an optimal and diversified strategy can be challenging, but it is not impossible. We can work with you to identify themes, source and integrate opportunities into your portfolio, and report on and monitor your progress.
Defining your impact investing approach
There are a number of approaches to sustainable investment, including ESG integration and screening, thematic investing and impact investing. Impact investing starts where ESG ends and spans opportunities that deliver varying market rate returns.
Some investors are willing to lower their expected levels of return to focus on impact in a particular area. However, we believe that when executed well, impact investing can generate a positive social or environmental impact in addition to delivering the return potential you are pursing.
We can help you review your objectives against your investment goals, defining an optimal strategy that balances your ESG ambitions with returns.
Spectrum of impact ambition
This chart shows that there are three stages across the impact investing spectrum. Stage one is for investors who want to behave responsibly, stage two is for investors who want to generate long-term returns from sustainable opportunities and stage three is for investors who want to make a larger scale impact whilst generating a return - for example, increasing access to affordable housing.
Discover impact investing
Considerations for impact investing
We outline four critical areas to focus on when considering impact investing. We can help you define an optimal approach that addresses each of the following key considerations:
-
Define your ambition and themesWe can help you determine where you want to make a real impact and define what that could look like for your portfolio.
-
Accessing managersWe have strong relationships with hundreds of managers around the world and can help you identify those with the right skill sets and opportunities to make a real impact.
-
Finding the right balanceWe can help you assess and find an optimal balance between generating financial returns and delivering an ESG impact, without sacrificing on either, when possible.
-
Reporting on progressWe can help you monitor and report on your progress. This will set you apart from any organisations that appear to be “greenwashing.”
Raising your impact ambition
Learn more about the path to impact through two case studies in this report, which covers the work of an illiquid private equity and a liquid globally listed equity firm.
Don’t miss out on articles like this
MercerInsight® Community
MercerInsight Community curates the latest strategic research from Mercer and hundreds of third-party publishers and asset managers. While some articles are featured here, most are reserved for members. Membership is complimentary and it’s quick and easy to join.
Join the community
How we help clients with impact investing
We have the global scale, extensive manager research and breadth of experience. This allows us to help you identify themes, source and integrate opportunities into your portfolio, and report and monitor your progress. We can flex our services to work in a way that suits you, whether you simply want our advice or you want us to work on your behalf through our investment solutions platform.
Tools to help guide your impact investing strategy
-
Gain access to our proprietary research
You can leverage our manager research on MercerInsight® and access our strategic research via the MercerInsight® Community. Our research helps you identify opportunities across traditional and emerging asset classes in both public and private markets. -
Get some advice from our global specialists
Our consulting team can guide the development of your impact investing approach, seamlessly calibrating it to fulfil your aspirations. They can also provide consulting advice on the execution of an investment plan to help you achieve your ESG and financial ambitions. -
Implement a solution to do the hard work for you
You can delegate your investments to us, or we can work with you to create a bespoke investment solution that combines your desired level of impact, risk and financial return. We flex our services to your requirements.
Impact investing through private markets
Impact investing in private markets is a rapidly growing subset of the sustainable investments universe. By aligning your portfolio with efforts to address pressing global issues, you can use your investments as an intentional, powerful tool for positive change.
Introducing some of our team
Contact our impact investing specialists today
Important
Before you access this page, please read and accept the terms and legal notices below.
You’re about to enter a website intended for sophisticated, institutional investors and the information contained herein is not intended for investors who are not qualified purchasers as defined in the US Investment Company Act of 1940. Information about Mercer strategies is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute, and should not be construed as, an offer to sell, or a solicitation of an offer to buy, any securities, or an offer, invitation or solicitation of any specific products or the investment management services of Mercer, or an offer or invitation to enter into any portfolio management mandate with Mercer.
Mercer makes no representation, and it should not be assumed, that past investment performance is an indication of future results. Moreover, wherever there is the potential for profit there is also the possibility of loss. Any person unable to accept these terms and conditions should not proceed any further. Mercer reserves the right to suspend or withdraw access to any page(s) included on this website without notice at any time and accepts no liability if, for any reason, these pages are unavailable at any time or for any period.
