WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--US SIF: The Forum for Sustainable and Responsible Investment announced today that CEO Lisa Woll, after more than 16 years leading the organization, will step down January 31, 2023. Woll will remain an advisor to US SIF through April 2023 to help ensure a smooth transition.
“Serving as US SIF’s CEO has been the professional highlight of my career,” said Woll. “The work of US SIF members, so many of them pioneers in this field, is an inspiration to me. I salute members’ commitment to advancing critical social, environmental and governance priorities through their investments.
“I have been so lucky that my tenure offered me the opportunity to lead a field that has undergone numerous and fascinating shifts. I greatly appreciate all the US SIF members, board members, staff, funders and colleague organizations who have made my time here so meaningful and memorable and who taught me so much.
“I love this job and am so proud of the impact our field has generated, but I am ready for my next professional adventure. As Serena Williams said at the start of this year’s US Open, ‘I am not retiring, but evolving.’”
“I want to thank Lisa for her immense contributions to US SIF and the US SIF Foundation and her work advancing the sustainable investment field,” said Diederik Timmer, chair of US SIF’s board of directors. “She is a transformational leader and a fierce advocate who shared her passion, sense of humor, strategic thinking and organizational development skills with us for more than a decade and a half. Lisa has been central to all we have achieved, taking us through a period of incredible growth and change.
“The board is also grateful for her thoughtful and diligent approach to supporting us with a smooth transition. Lisa will be deeply missed, but I know that what she does next will be as impactful as what she was able to achieve at US SIF. I very much look forward to the next chapter in her journey.”
Woll joined US SIF in 2006 and helped the industry develop and grow from what was often seen as a niche practice to a mainstream investment practice. Hallmarks of her tenure include expansion of US SIF’s revenues and reach; embedding public policy as one of the key strategies for advancing the sustainable investment field; launching the popular US SIF national conference; growing the organization’s research activities, including the profile of the biennial Trends Report; creating a series of educational offerings, including the only sustainable investment designation in the country (in partnership with the College for Financial Planning) and greatly increasing media coverage of the field.
The Board of US SIF, responsible for appointing a new CEO, has formed a search committee and retained the services of the executive recruitment specialist Korn Ferry to drive the search process. “US SIF is a highly regarded institution that presents a great opportunity for a candidate to meaningfully contribute to the rapid shift of investment practices toward sustainability and impact,” said Timmer. “I believe that we will attract a diverse and talented pool of candidates and am confident we will find an outstanding new CEO. The board is seeking a candidate who will further grow the impact and reach of the organization by continuing to effectively serve US SIF members, advance the field and promote industry best practices.”
The search will be led by led by Kate Shattuck, Senior Client Partner, Global Financial Services and Co-Leader, Impact Investing and Becky Graham, Principal and Association Practice Leader.
“We are delighted to work on this important succession project with US SIF’s board,” said Shattuck. “We are dedicated to a thorough search that respects the confidentiality of candidates in the process.” Details of the search and the candidate profile will be ready in the next several weeks.
About US SIF and the US SIF Foundation
US SIF: The Forum for Sustainable and Responsible Investment is the leading voice advancing sustainable investing across all asset classes. Its mission is to rapidly shift investment practices toward sustainability, focusing on long-term investment and the generation of positive social and environmental impacts. US SIF members, representing $5 trillion in assets under management or advisement, include investment management and advisory firms, mutual fund companies, asset owners, data and research firms, financial planners/advisors, broker-dealers, community development financial institutions and non-profit organizations.
US SIF is supported in its work by the US SIF Foundation, a 501(C)(3) organization that undertakes educational and research activities to advance the mission of US SIF, including offering trainings for advisors and other financial professionals on the Fundamentals of Sustainable and Impact Investment.
Learn more at ussif.org.
