INVESTMENT ASSOCIATE – Corporate Governance

State of Maryland•Baltimore City, MD

2d•Onsite

About The Position

The Maryland State Retirement Agency administers the Maryland State Retirement and Pension System (the “System”), a defined benefit retirement system for governmental employees in Maryland. The System comprises twelve separate retirement and pension systems with over 50 rule sets, serving over 397,000 participants. The agency is located in Baltimore’s Central Business District, offering a modern workplace with city and harbor views, renovated common areas, upgraded elevators, an on-site café, and a fitness center. Employees receive comprehensive state benefits, including medical, dental, prescription coverage, generous paid leave, participation in the state pension system, and supplemental retirement savings options. This is a Special Appointment position, serving at the pleasure of the Appointing Authority. The Investment Associate of Corporate Governance assists with the development and execution of Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) and Diversity initiatives, monitoring and evaluating related risks and effects on the System’s investment portfolio. Key responsibilities include managing divestment programs for compliance, supporting the Governance and Proxy Voting program, and ensuring governance objectives are met.

Requirements

Graduated from an accredited four-year college or university with a bachelor’s degree.
Applicants can substitute a minimum of three years of relevant experience in corporate governance, ESG/Sustainability, and investments or finance for the required education qualification.

Nice To Haves

Experience with Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG), and Diversity integration, including external manager due diligence.
Experience with ESG regulatory, standards setting, and shareholder engagement organizations, ESG measurement tools, ESG data applications and rating systems.
Experience with extracting insights from ESG data analysis/analytics to inform investment decisions.
Experience with Corporate governance, the proxy voting process, and investment stewardship best practices.
Experience with Adobe PDF, Microsoft Office – including robust Excel skills (pivot tables, complex formulas, large data sets), and a working knowledge of the Python programming language.

Responsibilities

Assist with Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) and Diversity initiatives and tasks to integrate ESG into investment due diligence processes across asset classes.
Support tracking and reporting on ESG and Diversity initiative efforts by external and internal managers and other related ESG data.
Assist with the development of any ESG related reports required by the Legislature or as necessary for the Investment Division, including the annual Climate Risk Report.
Assist with assessing and partnering with external data providers, including managers and consultants, to analyze, define and prioritize relevant ESG and Diversity metrics.
Assist with managing meetings and minutes of the Climate Advisory Panel.
Assist with conducting ESG analyses/analytics of potential and existing investments.
Support generation of documents and information related to the Investment Division’s integration of ESG and climate change-related factors into investment due diligence.
Assist with the evaluation of divestment laws to determine compliance.
Identify and monitor existing and potential companies that may be or are subject to Maryland divestment laws.
Assist with reporting divestment activities to management, the legislature and the Board of Trustees.
Assist with managing the proxy voting process and ensure that proxies are voted in accordance with the System’s custom proxy guidelines.
Maintain knowledge of best practices and current trends in corporate governance topics.
Assist with engagement activities related to corporate governance topics.
Assist with managing meetings and minutes of the Corporate Governance and Securities Litigation Committee.
Assist with the development, update and documentation of governance and proxy voting policies, procedures and processes.

Benefits

Medical, dental, prescription coverage
Generous paid leave
Participation in the state pension system
Supplemental retirement savings options (401(k), 457(b), and more)
On-site fitness center with showers and lockers
24/7 building security
Easy access to restaurants, shops, public transit, and major highways
Health insurance
Dental plans
Vision plans offered at a low cost
Personal Leave - new State employees are awarded six (6) personal days annually (prorated based on start date).
Annual Leave - ten (10) days of accumulated annual leave per year.
Sick Leave - fifteen (15) days of accumulated sick leave per year.
Parental Leave - up to sixty (60) days of paid parental leave upon the birth or adoption of a child.
Holidays - State employees also celebrate at least thirteen (13) holidays per year.
Pension - State employees earn credit towards a retirement pension.