Genevra is a Partner and Fund Manager at Evelyn Partners, where, amongst other responsibilities, she is Lead Manager of the Sustainable funds and MPS. She has 15 years’ experience of fund selection, with a focus on investment trusts, and managing multi-asset fund-of-fund solutions for institutional and private clients. She holds the CISI Masters in Wealth Management, the CAIA Charter and CFA Certificates in ESG Investing, Climate & Investing and Impact Investing.

1.Why is corporate culture becoming more important to you when deciding who to allocate assets to?

Ultimately, I want my clients to be comfortable with what they own and to get what they’re paying for. A poor corporate culture is one of many factors which increases the likelihood of adverse outcomes for them, so it’s really important for us to understand how a company and its people operate, and whether we can trust them to do what they say they will, when we’re building an investment case. From a broader perspective, channelling capital towards businesses which conduct themselves well and strive to constantly improve, over those which don’t, will hopefully encourage a general improvement across the industry over time, which can only be a good thing for all stakeholders.

2.In your view, why is it important to set a higher standard of stewardship and behaviour within the investment industry?

The industry is responsible for peoples’ savings; there should be no question that those who operate within it do so in a manner which inspires trust and confidence. There are enough examples of questionable stewardship and behaviour challenging the reputation of the industry in recent years to suggest that there is some room for improvement, so the setting of higher standards strikes me as a very good idea. 

3.Why did you decide to sit on the ACT Stewardship Council and what does it mean to you personally?

I think ACT is an incredibly worthy initiative which has real potential to make a meaningful difference to the investment industry; I am delighted to support it in any way I can.