Associate/AVP, Physical Climate Risk Specialist

Location: Singapore

Job Function: Risk & Performance Management Department 

Job Type: Permanent

Req ID: 17358 

GIC is one of the world’s largest sovereign wealth funds. With over 2,000 employees across 11 locations around the world, we invest in more than 40 countries globally across asset classes and businesses. Working at GIC gives you exposure to an extraordinary network of the world’s industry leaders. As a leading global long-term investor, we Work at the Point of Impact for Singapore’s financial future, and the communities we invest in worldwide.

Risk and Performance Management Department (RPMD)

In Risk & Performance Management Department (RPMD), we work collaboratively across teams to identify and address potential blind spots, ensuring that all relevant risks are considered and duly addressed.

Enterprise Risk and Performance

The Enterprise Risk and Performance (ERP) team within RPMD is responsible for integrated total portfolio risk management across investment, liquidity, leverage, sustainability, and other transversal risks. The team delivers independent assessments of investment risks and performance drivers, provides constructive challenge on portfolio design, and capital allocation decisions and leads the strategic development of total portfolio risk analytics and model risk management capabilities.

What will you do as a Physical Climate Risk Specialist?

As a Physical Climate Risk Specialist, you will support our efforts to measure and manage the physical risks that climate change poses to our investment portfolio. In this role, you will apply your scientific training in hazard modelling to hands-on analysis—building metrics, evaluating models, and generating the insights that help GIC understand how physical risks such as wildfires, floods, storms, and extreme heat affect our investments. You will collaborate with risk managers and investment teams to bring rigorous, data-driven physical risk analysis into GIC's investment process. 

Key Responsibilities

• Climate risk analysis: Assess GIC's portfolio exposure to physical climate risk across geographies and asset classes, covering both acute hazards (e.g. wildfires, floods, tropical cyclones) and chronic hazards (e.g. sea-level rise, heat stress, water scarcity).
• Methodology development: Contribute to the design, build, and validation of metrics, frameworks and methodologies to quantify physical risk exposure, drawing on climate hazard and impact models, exceedance probability damage functions, and scenario analysis.
• Vendor model evaluation: Critically assess third-party and vendor models for scientific robustness, methodological soundness, and fitness for purpose: examining underlying assumptions, data quality, hazard and damage function methodologies, uncertainty treatment, and limitations, to guide GIC's selection and appropriate use of external physical risk tools.
• Asset level analysis: Understand how physical risks will affect asset value and returns, identify assets vulnerable to permanent impairment risk and their impact on the GIC portfolio’s risk and returns.
• Investment team support: Work with investment teams to help them understand the physical risk profile of specific assets and support the development of practical recommendations to mitigate and manage these risks.
• Subject Matter Expert: Serve as a trusted point of reference on physical climate risk across GIC, well read in the underlying science, fluent in its intricacies and uncertainties, and able to advise risk managers and investment teams on how to interpret the science.
• Industry and regulatory awareness: Stay abreast of industry developments and advances in climate science and modelling, and ensure that GIC's methodologies, data, and frameworks remain compliant with regulatory requirements and aligned with market best practices.
• Leveraging AI: Explore and apply AI tools and models to support and enhance existing workflows and process within the team—for example, to strengthen climate risk modelling and analysis, process large and unstructured datasets, and generate more robust, granular, or forward-looking climate risk insights.

What qualifications or skills should you possess in this role? 

• Masters or Doctorate (PhD) in either climate and atmospheric science, geophysics, or in mathematics, actuarial science, statistics, or a closely related field.
• Solid understanding of climate modelling and its application to physical risk assessment.
• Familiarity with catastrophe modelling as applied in the insurance or reinsurance industry (e.g. CAT models, exposure and vulnerability modelling).
• Familiarity with climate scenario frameworks (e.g. IPCC, CMIP, NGFS) and physical risk disclosure standards (e.g. TCFD/ISSB).
• Strong quantitative and programming skills (e.g. Python, R) and experience working with geospatial and climate datasets.
• Knowledge and familiarity with the latest AI tools and models, and an interest in applying them to risk analysis.
• Exposure to climate risk analysis in a financial services, asset management, insurance, or investment context (including through research, internships, or academic collaboration) will be an advantage.
• Knowledge of investment and financial risk & modelling is preferred.Strong communication skills with an ability to communicate complex scientific concepts clearly to non-specialist audiences.

Work at the Point of Impact

We need to be forward-looking to attract the right people to help us become the Leading Global Long-term Investor. Join our ambitious, agile, and diverse teams - be empowered to push boundaries and pursue innovative ideas, share your views, and be heard. Be anchored on our PRIME Values: Prudence, Respect, Integrity, Merit and Excellence, which guides us in how we make our day-to-day decisions. We strive to inspire. To make an impact.

Flexibility at GIC

At GIC, our offices are vibrant hubs for ideation, professional growth, and interpersonal connection.  At the same time, we believe that flexibility allows us to do our best work and be our best selves.  Thus, our teams come into the office four days per week to harness the benefits of in-person collaboration, but have the flexibility to choose which days they work from home and adjust this arrangement as situational needs arise.

GIC is an equal opportunity employer

GIC is an equal opportunity employer, and we value diversity. We do not discriminate based on race, religion, color, national origin, sex, gender, gender expression, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status. We will ensure that individuals with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodation to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and to receive other benefits and privileges of employment. Please email grphrodtaops@gic.com.sg at any point of the application or interview process if adjustments need to be made due to a disability.

Learn More

Learn more about our Risk & Performance Management Department here: https://gic.careers/group/risk-performance-management/