Our Background
Jennifer Nicole Coombs is a nationally recognized leader in sustainable investing, financial education, and ESG thought leadership. As Head of Content & Development at US SIF: The Sustainable Investment Forum, she drives the creation of market-leading educational programs, professional credentials, and advisor-focused tools that strengthen the field’s integrity and impact. She is also an adjunct professor at her prior employer, The College for Financial Planning (Kaplan Wealth Management), where she developed the groundbreaking Chartered SRI Counselor™ (CSRIC®) designation—the first U.S. professional credential dedicated to sustainable investing.
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A sought-after educator and speaker, Jennifer has delivered two TEDx talks (in 2015 and 2018), and her insights have been featured in The New York Times, AP News, The Journal of Financial Planning, Market Watch, and Financial Planning Magazine. She was named as one of InvestmentNews Magazine’s 40 Under 40 Honorees (2023), and received the College for Financial Planning’s Faculty of the Year Award (2022), reflecting her influence on thousands of advisors and students nationwide.
Jennifer’s expertise spans ESG data, sustainable portfolios, impact measurement, and advisor-client communication. She is the architect behind US SIF’s Financial Advisor Roadmap Series and multiple educational initiatives throughout the United States designed to elevate professionalism and reduce greenwashing in the marketplace.
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Driven by clarity, rigor, and accessibility, Jennifer is shaping the next generation of sustainable finance.
Curriculum Vitae
Head of Content & Development
As Head of Content & Development at US SIF, Jenny leads the organization’s education and thought leadership strategy, designing programs and resources that make sustainable investing more practical and accessible for financial advisors, asset managers, and institutional investors. She oversees the development of advisor-focused toolkits, courses, and industry convenings — including the Financial Advisor Roadmap Series and Advisor Day programming at the US SIF FORUM — with a focus on bridging the gap between ESG theory and real-world portfolio implementation. Her work strengthens industry standards while expanding the reach and credibility of sustainable investing education.
US SIF: The Sustainable Investment Forum
Director of Client Success
Ethos ESG (ACA Group)
As Director of Client Success at Ethos ESG (ACA Group), Jenny led strategic client engagement for an ESG data and analytics platform serving financial professionals. She worked closely with advisory firms and institutions to operationalize ESG integration, navigate complex sustainability data, and strengthen reporting practices amid growing regulatory scrutiny. Jenny focused on translating ESG concepts into practical implementation, improving adoption workflows, and positioning firms to mitigate greenwashing risk while enhancing client communication.
Adjunct Professor
& Creator of the CSRIC®
The College for Financial Planning (A Kaplan Company)
Jenny created the Chartered SRI Counselor™ (CSRIC®) designation, the first U.S. professional credential dedicated to sustainable and responsible investing, pioneering a curriculum that has helped hundreds of financial professionals build technical expertise in ESG integration and impact investing. As an Adjunct Professor, she guides advisors through the evolving sustainable investing landscape with a focus on rigor, clarity, and practical application. In recognition of her contributions to financial education, she was named Faculty of the Year in 2022.
Early Career – Investment Research, Trading & Portfolio Management
Earlier in her career, Jenny held roles spanning equity research, technical and fundamental analysis, trading, and portfolio management, building a strong foundation in traditional financial markets. This experience provided the analytical discipline and market fluency that now underpin her work in sustainable finance, enabling her to approach ESG integration through a financially material and practitioner-focused lens.
Thought Leadership & Industry Impact
Beyond her formal roles, Jenny is a recognized voice in sustainable investing, delivering two TEDx talks and contributing regularly as a columnist and media commentator. In 2023, she was named to InvestmentNews’ 40 Under 40 list in recognition of her leadership and impact on financial education and ESG practice. Her work consistently emphasizes practical implementation, advisor empowerment, and elevating industry standards in sustainable finance.
Education
Jenny holds a Master of Science in Finance (MSF) from The College for Financial Planning and a Bachelor of Science (BS) from Clarkson University, where she was a double major in Financial Information and Analysis and Political Science, and a double minor in Law and Economics. She completed a semester at Sungkyunkwan University in Seoul, South Korea, and completed a gap year at the Lycee Jeanne D'Arc in Pontivy, France. She is fluent in French and is conversational in German.
