Bain Capital’s impact buyout strategy has recruited Amanda Kizer, a former director in Nuveen’s impact team, Bain Capital managing director Cecilia Chao told New Private Markets.

Kizer joins as an ESG manager and will lead ESG performance management and reporting for Bain Capital’s ‘Double Impact’ strategy, which has raised $1.2 billion across two funds.

The firm recently recruited six associates for the impact strategy, growing the Double Impact team to 26 professionals. The Double Impact strategy was launched in 2017; among its founding partners was one-time presidential candidate and former Massachusetts governor Deval Patrick. Patrick now sits on Double Impact’s advisory board.

Investors in Double Impact’s $390 million debut fund included the Los Angeles City Employees’ Retirement System, the Los Angeles Fire & Police Pension System and the Surdna Foundation. Fund II closed at $800 million in 2020, having targeted $600 million. The strategy focuses on US based buyout deals across three themes: health and wellness; education and workforce development; and environmental sustainability.

At Nuveen – which closed its debut private equity impact fund at $218 million earlier this year – Kizer led impact measurement and reporting, and supported development of the impact strategy. Prior to joining Nuveen in November 2020, Kizer was head of global innovation at B Lab, a non-profit that provides assessment tools for companies’ operational sustainability and impact.

Bain Capital uses the Operating Principles for Impact Management to evaluate potential deals, and B Lab’s impact assessment tool to monitor portfolio companies during ownership. The team had previously worked with Kizer in her role at B Lab “in the early days” of the firm’s impact strategy, Chao told New Private Markets.

Kizer’s role involves supporting portfolio companies to manage their responsibilities around impact reporting and accountability and “helping the company to focus on the core outcomes they’re trying to achieve”, said Chao. “Impact investing has become more complex because of all the noise in the market.”

While the market’s increased emphasis on reporting and avoiding impact-washing is a positive, said Chao, “we’re also trying to maintain authenticity on driving impact outcomes”.

Kizer has moved from New York City to Boston, Bain Capital’s headquarters, to take up her new role.

Nuveen declined to comment.