Impact Investing: An Authentic Combination Of Purpose And Profession
Thought-leading economist, Wall Street investor and impact investing innovator, Sorenson Impact Institute Senior Fellow Robert Brown shares his perspective on how the new Impact & Prosperity Epicenter at the University of Utah positions the school and its students at the forefront of the rapidly accelerating and fertile field of impact investing.
In 2019, as my partners and I were launching the Atlas Impact Fund, the Yale School of Management invited me to speak about impact measurement and metrics at its annual Impact Investing Conference. While the auditorium was filled with a like-minded audience comprising academics, policy advocates, impact practitioners, and some very impressive students, those of us inside the hall were working in a world very different from the mainstream investing crowd outside the wooden doors of the auditorium. Back then, we were (incorrectly) known as the “concessionary” investors.
Roll the clock forward a short five years, and our thesis, as well as the broader concept of “doing well and doing good,” has become deeply integrated into the mainstream. The Global Impact Investing Network (GIIN) estimates in their latest market sizing report that global assets under management in impact investments now represent $1.2 trillion, with investment activities linked to renewable energy, racial and gender equity, global resilience planning, circular economy initiatives, and education and skills development.
As the market for impact investments has grown exponentially, so too have the opportunities to align purpose and career in impact-oriented investing sectors. For young professionals, that is a welcomed dynamic — nearly 9 in 10 Gen Zers and Millennials say they want purpose-driven careers, according to a Deloitte survey. The most compelling idea today for students seeking a personally meaningful career is that impact investing offers an authentic combination of purpose and profession and a pathway to combining skills and values.
In support of this important trend, leaders in academia and finance know well that empowering a wider range of young people from a variety of backgrounds to pursue careers in impact investing is essential to ensuring the financial sector fulfills its vital role in advancing innovations in sustainability, equity and circular economies.
The Impact & Prosperity Epicenter: Launchpad for the Future of Impact Investing
Back in 2019, those of us dedicated to the concept of directing capital toward global solutions were still defending the thesis: In the eyes of mainstream fund managers, impact investors were on the fringe. As we would eventually disprove, we were believed to be “sacrificing return” (untrue), “restricting our investable universe” (as all successful investors do), and, most egregiously, violating Milton Friedman’s (misunderstood) views on the purpose of capital.
Today on Wall Street and in the broader finance world, as assets under management (AUM) of sustainable and impact investing grow faster than in any other sector, investment organizations large and small are responding in real-time to accelerating client demand. According to the 2024 Impact Investing Global Market Report, more than 60% of U.S. millennial investors participate in impact investing, and the roughly 40% of non-participating investors are expected to engage in impact investment in the future. Behind that demand from asset owners is significant change, reflected in an important reality: investing in impact means investing in innovation, which is exactly where you want to be as both an investor and a passionate advocate for a better world.
That impact and innovation mindset has long been central to the Sorenson Impact Institute at the University of Utah David Eccles School of Business, which offers students a unique curriculum in Social Impact. For the Institute, this semester is a watershed moment: The University just opened the doors to the Impact & Prosperity Epicenter, a multidisciplinary hub for social impact, community engagement, and enterprise. The new building, a mix of student dorms and office space for groups like the Sorenson Impact Institute, complements the Institute’s overall mission of developing the next generation of investment professionals and impact practitioners. Students will study and live together in a community designed to incubate careers with deep knowledge and purpose-driven practical learning.
This development at the Sorenson Impact Institute and similar efforts across global universities reflect and support an increasingly collaborative approach to our industry and our shared work toward a more equitable and sustainable world. The initiative aims to increase exposure and access to careers in impact investing across asset classes, and provide important exposure to issues and ideas to students from broad backgrounds.
And, importantly, the Institute aims to provide access to career pathways that have not traditionally been accessible to all, providing hands-on training to students from all backgrounds so we can develop a diverse talent pipeline to the sector. In one early example, the Sorenson Impact Investing team is leveraging proven training tools to increase access to investing for students from all backgrounds. The team has partnered with Bowie State University, a historically Black university, and Miami Dade College, selecting three students from each school to join the impact investing apprenticeship program for the 2024-25 cohort. Diversifying the talent pipeline, the Sorenson team believes, will diversify the way capital flows in venture.
Advice for Future Impact Leaders
I believe students seeking to work in impact will find the clearest pathway at a firm specifically designed to invest in impact. Unlike some mega-cap financial services firms, where, even at the most committed organizations, impact investing is a niche strategy, in a firm designed to invest in impact, you are working with colleagues who share your passion and clients who deeply value your work. On a daily basis, you are affirming your own personal values.
So, in pursuit of those ambitions, what does a student need to study? What skills should a student acquire for the marketplace? I am frequently asked these questions following a lecture or seminar on campus.
First, asset owners in the world of impact investing are demanding higher levels of authenticity and greater rigor from asset managers. That requires a real commitment for students, often outside the classroom. Be sure to take classes that familiarize you with impact evaluation, measurement and metrics. Be sure to take a class in sustainability and, where it is offered, impact investing. And, get an internship if you can, participate in an impact investing club — and make good on your commitment.
More broadly, my answer to the questions, “What should I study?” or “What skills should I acquire” has not changed over the years. It is this: Those are the wrong questions. A motivated student should first be asking themself: “What interests me?” and “What am I good at?” Make no mistake — for a career as an investor, problem-solving skills and facility with numbers are table stakes, but for success, intellectual curiosity and drive are paramount. So then ask yourself: What are the local or global challenges I want to help solve? What are the issues that drive solutions in the areas I want to work in? Even more simply, where are my passions guiding me? And finally ask yourself, what are the courses I should pursue and the tools I need to acquire to pursue “that” ambition?
In closing, a guiding principle is this: to be successful as an investor, you must align your work with your ambitions. Once you figure out “that,” after you know what drives your curiosity, and you determine your greatest professional strengths, these three things will lead you toward success: hard work, integrity, and resilience. Ask the right questions, pursue honest answers, learn from your mistakes, and most importantly, have the humility to move on when the market proves you wrong.
