The Senior Analyst, Sustainability Reporting, assists with organizing and coordinating a broad variety of activities involving firmwide portfolio- and asset-level ESG performance data analysis, benchmarking, and reporting; significant ad hoc investor inquiries; and coordination of certain ESG compliance activities. The Analyst’s work activities are directed and closely monitored by the team leader within 1 or more of the team’s 3 major workstreams:
1. Global GRESB Coordination – Hines conducts approximately 15 individual annual GRESB submissions, including several large portfolios of real estate assets. Success requires engagement across fund and asset managers, development project managers, functional team members, other Sustainability organization team members, and several consultants (covering GRESB, data assurance, ISO compliance, etc.) spanning 3 global regions, on a recurring annual reporting cycle from 1 July to 30 June.
2. Global ESG Reporting Coordination – The team delivers reporting and analysis supporting the following business process areas or required third-party reporting frameworks: investment committee ESG project outcomes, routine investor due diligence inquiries, net zero carbon progress, Hines sustainable value creation framework progress, EU SFDR Article 8 filings, annual fund investor report ESG results, annual fund sustainability report, EU Taxonomy, CSRD, TNFD (2028), TCFD/SASB, UN PRI, Inrev, BVI, EET, Ecovadis, green bond requirements, Shareaction, SBTI, future US SEC sustainability requirements, and local jurisdiction requirements including California, UK, and other localities. The team anticipates completing or directing at least 75 unique, involved reporting deliverables each year.
3. Supporting Projects – As a recently formed functional team, a significant project during the 2026-2027 reporting year is incorporating learnings and improvements in people, information systems, business processes and timelines, and utilization of outside advisory resources. Other projects include working closely with the Sustainability Data team regarding data collection, defining qualitative information requirements of reporting systems, and identifying performance gaps impacting Reporting team delivery. As the execution elements of the GRESB and Reporting workstreams continue to take shape, this workstream will include supporting ad hoc investor inquiries and process standardization.
Senior Analyst work activities to be directed by the team leader include discrete projects and routines:
Report Preparation: Contribute to the design and population of regular sustainability reports and presentations for internal and external stakeholders, including senior management, regulatory agencies, sustainability rating organizations, and investors. Catalog comprehensive list of reporting commitments. Create user interface to promote access to past reporting. Document basic report characteristics to support planning and work scoping. Understand data input sourcing. Develop calendar of reporting commitment deadlines. Apply quality control standards to work products.
Data Collection and Validation Support: Assist in articulating business requirements for the collection, validation, and analysis of ESG data, including energy consumption, waste management, GHG emissions, green building certifications, green lease representation, resource efficiency practices, and other metrics. Apply concepts of completeness and accuracy appropriately.
Data Management Systems: Understand and access data management systems and tools to support efficient data collection and reporting. Systems in use include Carbon Impact Assessment Tool, Scaler Global, and several spreadsheet-, Smartsheet-, or Sharepoint-based databases.
Frameworks and Standards: Use available resources to stay updated on existing sustainability reporting frameworks, standards, and best practices (e.g., GRESB, GRI, CDP, SASB, ISSB, UN SDGs, etc.). When receiving communications from Legal, Compliance, Sustainability Strategies, local project teams, and consultants regarding emerging reporting requirements, flag these to the team leader.
Goal Development, Implementation, and Performance Measurement: Understand the development and implementation of sustainability goals, targets, and initiatives – and how performance against targets is reflected in reporting deliverables.
Internal Guidance and Direction: Provide guidance and support to internal teams on sustainability data collection and reporting, including the full population of GRESB Management, Performance, and Development indicators.
Audit Readiness: Support internal assurance readiness, including development and management of reporting procedures and documentation. Assist in coordinating engagement with third-party GRESB validation consultants.
ESG Ratings and Surveys: Obtain or develop responses to key ESG ratings, rankings, surveys, and tenant inquiries, as needed within GRESB benchmark coordination or investor inquiries.
Gap and Trend Analysis and Benchmarking: Assist in developing reporting tools to be used in improving ESG performance through data needs, trend analysis, gap analysis, and benchmarking.
Policy and Regulation Awareness: Flag any deviations from company policies, standards, and operating practices as they relate to sustainability programs. Develop and maintain awareness regulations and standards needed to support reporting compliance.
Research and Benchmarking: As needed on an ad hoc basis, undertake research projects and benchmarking analysis on ESG-related topics and themes.
Process Improvement: Identify opportunities for process improvements for reporting and analyzing ESG performance data and within the underlying ESG compliance processes coordinated by the team.
Cross-functional Collaboration and Stakeholder Engagement: Collaborate with cross-functional teams to gather data and insights for sustainability reporting. Engage stakeholders to address information needs and advance the company's reputation as a leader in sustainability.
Data Visualization: Utilize data visualization tools (e.g., PowerBI) to present sustainability data in an accessible and impactful manner.
Training and Development: Participate in training sessions for internal teams on sustainability reporting practices and tools. As needed, develop training materials.
Performance Tracking: Support monitoring and tracking progress towards sustainability goals and targets where needed to meet reporting obligations.
