St James’s Place (SJP) has launched a training programme to help its advisers and partners give best practice advice on responsible investing to clients.
The four-part training series covers the basics of responsible investment, solutions available to partners, how to tackle client conversations and SJP’s approach to engagement with companies on environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors.
The firm said it is part of a wider programme across the business to position it better to respond to emerging risks and opportunities regarding ESG.
“The training programme will help our advisers and partners better understand how to integrate responsible investment into conversations with clients,” said Petra Lee, responsible investment consultant at SJP.
“The training has been designed to not only assist with conversations but also embed processes into their businesses.”
Further modules will be launched covering areas such as the impact of climate change, attitudes to sustainability and the FCA’s sustainability labelling regime.
The training programme will also count towards CPD.
According to SJP’s Future of Financial Planning report, advisers across the industry believe it is in their remit to discuss clients’ non-financial investment motivations, which includes sustainability goals..
Equally, the majority of clients (59 per cent) said that generally speaking, it’s important to discuss ESG with their adviser.
Sam Turner, head of responsible investing at SJP, said: “Expanding our knowledge on best practice across our partnership and investment team is crucial if we are to be a leading responsible business delivering great client outcomes.
“We know this is an area where there is a lot of jargon, and it can be tricky for clients to understand what different approaches can be taken under the responsible investment umbrella.”
Turner added: "Speaking with an adviser can be a great way to align your investments with your sustainability goals.”
As part of the wider programme, SJP said its investment team and analysts underwent a climate training course in conjunction with fund manager Ninety-One and Imperial College London.
The sessions consisted of lectures on climate risk, valuation impacts and climate science which will increase the ability of its analysts to consider how fund managers approach and incorporate climate change into their investment decisions.
sonia.rach@ft.com
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