As independent advisor and research team leader I provide services in support of shaping integrated investment management. This involves taking responsible investment mainstream, in different asset classes including listed equities and private equity as well as the areas of wealth management and impact investing.
Working with horisontal and interdisciplinary teams, I provide co-leadership in delivering:
Planning, design, quality control and interpretation of Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) analysis of business performance, including determination of material relevance in appropriate context and advice for future-fit portfolio development,
Development of integrated investment analysis, taking findings of ESG and fundamental or comparative financial analysis and defining connectivity and causal relations between key performance aspects and core financial value drivers, and
Facilitation of investor engagements with investee companies and institutions, leading critical yet collaborative discussions to take stock of progress, areas for improvement, dilemmas, long-term implications and true value creation.
Digital Finance and Citizen Action in Financing the Future of Climate-smart Infrastructure (UN Inquiry and Sustainable Digital Finance Alliance, 2019)
Lead author, on engagement of consumers and retail investors via fintech in support of climate-smart infrastructure development, with entrepreneurial examples world-wide.
Green Digital Finance: Mapping Switzerland and Beyond (UN Inquiry, Sustainable Digital Finance Alliance and Swiss Government, 2018)
Co-authored with Fiona Bayat-Renoux, examining leading international fintech hubs and entrepreneurial start-ups emerging from Zurich, Geneva, Lausanne and beyond.
The Sustainability Business Case
Business case analysis by Marc Bertoneche of Harvard and myself. Updated version published in The Conference Board’s Sustainability Matters 2014, Research Report R-1538-14-R, 2014.
Finding the God particle of the sustainability business case
Co-written with Marc Bertoneche, Visiting Professor of Finance at Harvard Business School. Illustrates a refined Green Business Case Model, including seven core financial value drivers.
Nature in Performance (World Resources Institute 2011)
Nature in Performance (World Resources Institute 2011)
Co-authored with Graig Hanson and Suzanne Ozment of the WRI, a concise guide on the integration of ecosystem services into business performance systems incl ISO14001 environmental management systems, Global Compact Performance Model and WRI / WBCSD Corporate Ecosystem Services Review.
Towards a Green Economy (UNEP 2011), Manufacturing Chapter, co-lead author with Prof Robert Ayres, INSEAD
Contribution to UNEP Green Economy Report, covering risks and opportunities facing manufacturing in a resource-constrained world, the costs of business-as-usual, supply and demand side strategies for greening and lean manufacturing.
Working Towards Sustainable Development: Opportunities for decent work and social inclusion in a Green Economy (ILO et.al. 2012)
Manufacturing and Buildings Chapters, contributing author with Michael Renner, Worldwatch Institute. Part of updated ILO Green Jobs Report, addressing growth and employment opportunities in greening of manufacturing, building & construction including emerging skills requirements.
Unchaining Value: Innovative approaches to sustainable supply (SustainAbility, UNEP and UN Global Compact, 2008)
Worked with the SustainAbility team in developing this report, addressing new trends in global supply chain management and applying a partnership approach in value chains to advance social responsibility standards. Focused on the ICT and Agrifood industries including global commodity initiatives.
"Cornis is a thoughtful consultant with a broad understanding of non-financial issues facing large corporations globally, issues that have a significant impact on the investment case, the assessment of the companies’ business models, and on their valuation. We very much appreciate the way Cornis handles the engagement process with our portfolio companies."
Christopher Quast, Managing Partner, De Pury Pictet Turrettini Asset Management, Switzerland
"We would like to bring to your attention the wonderful web platform Cornis has created. As stated on the homepage of Materialitytracker (2015), this site 'is about the difference between the important and the trivial, framed in the context of sustainability'."
Bob Eccles, Professor of Management Practice, Harvard Business School, USA
"His international network and experience in working with sustainability initiatives such as the GRI and ISO26000 is well recognised. I would certainly recommend Cornis for project work related to the use of ESG criteria in business and investment decision-making."
Tom Rotherham, Director, Hermes Equity Ownership Services Ltd