Biography
Dr. Maximilian (Max) Horster is Global Head of Strategy at ISS ESG, the sustainable investment arm of Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS). Globally recognized as a leading ESG practitioner, he is responsible for helping to inform the strategic direction for development and positioning of ISS ESG’s suite of offerings by eliciting feedback from clients and others, including at international fora, to ensure products meet their needs and those of financial industry stakeholders.
Internally, Max coordinates across all relevant functions to act on feedback and assess industry trends and developments in furtherance of developing new solutions and services. Previously, he served as Global Head of ISS ESG and as Global Head of ISS ESG’s Climate Business.
Max joined ISS ESG in 2017 following ISS’ acquisition of the South Pole Group's climate neutral investment business, which he co-founded in 2009. There, Max and team developed the world’s largest repository of company level climate-change data and pioneered the development of leading standardized climate screening investment tools.
Prior to this, Max worked at Capital Group in North America, Asia, and Europe and lead several European Union-funded greenhouse gas accounting projects while also advising governments on the matter. He is a frequent speaker at conferences, teaches about ESG topics at several universities, and publishes regularly on the opportunities and challenges of ESG investing.
Max holds a PhD in History from the University of Cambridge. In his spare time, he enjoys the mountains around his hometown near Frankfurt and spending time with his wife and four children.
