Aviva Investors, the global asset management unit of Aviva PLC, has appointed Paul LaCoursiere to the newly-created role of global head of ESG research within its Global Responsible Investment team, announced Aviva Investors on March 14.

Based in London and reporting to Steve Waygood, chief responsible investment officer, LaCoursiere will be responsible for the corporate environmental, social and governance (ESG) research process at Aviva Investors, including the integration and monitoring of ESG criteria within Equities and Credit. He will jointly lead the research team with Mirza Baig, global head of governance.

LaCoursiere has 17 years’ experience in the asset management industry and assumes the role after spending the last three years as global head of corporate research at Aviva Investors.

Steve Waygood, chief responsible investment officer at Aviva Investors, said, “Over the past two years we have added substantial resources to our ESG research capabilities, which we believe has a critical role to play in enhancing stock selection, portfolio construction and risk-adjusted returns for our clients. Paul has a wealth of experience in fund management, investment research and quantitative analytics, as well as established relationships with portfolio managers and analysts.”

Following LaCoursiere’s appointment, Oliver Judd and Kevin Gaydos have been named co-heads of credit research, reporting to Colin Purdie, chief investment officer, credit.