Leadership Team

Pierre-François, Co-Founder and Co-CEO of EcoVadis, has more than 20 years of innovative procurement, sustainability and entrepreneurial experience. He leads our Customers, Marketing, Solutions and Impact departments and, alongside Frédéric, guides our strategic development and approach to sustainable value creation. Before founding EcoVadis in 2007, Pierre-François spent several years as Director of Managed Services at Ariba and CEO of B2Build, the first B2B marketplace for the European construction industry. Pierre-François holds an MSc in Electrical Engineering from CentraleSupélec and an MBA from INSEAD.

Frédéric, Co-Founder and Co-CEO of EcoVadis, is a global entrepreneur with more than 20 years of experience in finance and technology. He leads our People, Finance, Evaluations and Technology departments and, alongside Pierre-François, guides our strategic development and approach to sustainable value creation. Before launching EcoVadis in 2007, Frédéric led MrTed’s (now Cornerstone) Technology & Operations as COO. He has founded four other companies across the global trade, software and human resources industries, all of which remain active today. Frédéric holds a degree in International Business from ICAD Business School in Paris.

Chao brings over 20 years of experience in finance, as both a corporate executive and strategic advisor, to his role as Chief Financial Officer. Before joining EcoVadis, he spent more than a decade in investment banking in London and New York, leading the execution of equity and debt offerings, M&A transactions and strategic advisory engagements in the retail and consumer sectors. He served as CFO for both Oscaro and Isabel Marant in Paris, implementing profitable growth plans and spearheading data-driven operational changes. Chao holds an MSc in Finance from HEC Paris.

With more than 20 years of experience in sustainability and ESG solutions, Sylvain oversees our ratings operations and methodology development in his role as Chief Rating Officer. He has been with EcoVadis since its inception, serving as VP of Research from 2007 to 2021. Prior to this, Sylvain was Head of Research and Rating Operations at Vigeo Eiris, a leading ESG ratings and research agency since acquired by Moody’s. He holds an MSc in Industrial Management from Cranfield University and an MBA from INSEAD.

In her role as Chief People Officer, Laurianne builds on more than 15 years of experience in human resources, organizational transformation and HR digitalization. Prior to joining EcoVadis, she spent a decade in the software industry leading regional and global HR functions in her roles as Atos’ HR Director for South America, Linedata’s CPO and Bull’s Global C&B, HRIS and Development Director. Laurianne holds a Master’s degree in Human Resources from Paris V University and a Master in Management from ESSCA School of Management.

With more than 20 years of experience in strategy, finance and management, Orlane serves as Chief Corporate Development Officer and Chief of Staff. Through long-range planning, M&A, governance, transformation and global project management, she supports the leadership team in developing and executing the group’s vision and strategy. Orlane’s previous roles include Chief Strategy Officer at Europe Snacks, Partner at Global PMI Partners and Finance Director at Avnet Technology Solutions. She holds a Master in Management from SKEMA Business School.

As Chief Impact Officer, Nicole leads our efforts around measuring the positive impact of our activities and magnifying our impact in alignment with our purpose and values. Since joining EcoVadis in 2010, she has held roles ranging from Sustainability Analyst to SVP Customer Success, where she was responsible for more than 1000 customers and 130 client success managers. Nicole’s previous experience includes roles in production & media development in television, cinema and print with a specialization in social and environmental topics. She holds an MBA in Sustainable Management from Presidio Graduate School.

As Chief Technology Officer, Frank builds on more than 25 years of international experience in the technology sector. He spent nearly 20 years at Adobe in various leadership roles, including seven years as Senior Director of Software Engineering. Frank developed and managed key parts of the Adobe Content Cloud platform, a world-class and highly scalable foundation for Adobe Creative Cloud and Document Cloud platforms. He holds an engineering degree in Technical Computer Science from the Hamburg University of Applied Sciences.

As Chief Customer Officer, Richard is responsible for driving an optimized customer lifecycle in concert with the Solutions and Marketing teams to ensure customer success and rated company engagement. Before joining EcoVadis, he served as Global Chief Revenue Officer at Fleet Complete and spent more than a decade as Country Manager of Salesforce Canada, helping grow the organization from a startup to a $500M business with more than 1,400 people. Richard holds a BCom from the University of Toronto.

Pierre-François, Co-Founder and Co-CEO of EcoVadis, has more than 20 years of innovative procurement, sustainability and entrepreneurial experience. He leads our Customers, Marketing, Solutions and Impact departments and, alongside Frédéric, guides our strategic development and approach to sustainable value creation. Before founding EcoVadis in 2007, Pierre-François spent several years as Director of Managed Services at Ariba and CEO of B2Build, the first B2B marketplace for the European construction industry. Pierre-François holds an MSc in Electrical Engineering from CentraleSupélec and an MBA from INSEAD.

Frédéric, Co-Founder and Co-CEO of EcoVadis, is a global entrepreneur with more than 20 years of experience in finance and technology. He leads our People, Finance, Evaluations and Technology departments and, alongside Pierre-François, guides our strategic development and approach to sustainable value creation. Before launching EcoVadis in 2007, Frédéric led MrTed’s (now Cornerstone) Technology & Operations as COO. He has founded four other companies across the global trade, software and human resources industries, all of which remain active today. Frédéric holds a degree in International Business from ICAD Business School in Paris.

Aaron joined CVC in 2014 and leads its Technology team in the US. Prior to joining CVC, he was a Principal at Serent Capital. Aaron received a BA cum laude in Economics from Williams College and an MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business where he was an Arjay Miller Scholar.

Sebastian joined CVC in 2012 and leads its Technology team in Europe. Prior to joining CVC, he worked for Francisco Partners and UBS Investment Bank. Sebastian studied at Boston College and the University of Glasgow, where he graduated with a first-class MA in Business and Management. Prior to university, Sebastian served in the German military.

Laura is an experienced C-Suite leader and former chief environmental regulator that has led a Fortune 100 company through major business turnarounds while executing growth strategies and ESG capabilities. Laura’s extensive executive experience and insights from the private and public sectors helped shape her unique perspective in understanding opportunities and risks that drive profitability and support company purpose. Laura has managed an annual P&L of $400M and overseen teams of up to 1,000 employees. She has developed and led global functions in China, Mexico and Canada and was responsible for starting and significantly growing numerous functions at Best Buy.

Annette Thomas is a senior advisor to General Atlantic, a global growth equity firm, and a non-executive director on the board of the global education company Pearson PLC. She has overseen some of the leading academic publishing, media, and data analytics companies in the world. A trained scientist, Ms. Thomas earned her undergraduate degree from Harvard and a PhD in cell biology and neuroscience from Yale.

Benoit joined Astorg in 2012 and is a member of the Investment Team. Prior to this, Benoit founded Comptabis, a start-up offering offshore accounting services, which he successfully sold in 2012. Previously, he spent 5 years with Cinven, where he was the Principal in charge of the Sebia investment. He started his career as a Consultant with Bain & Cie in Paris and San Francisco, where he spent 3 years including a long term assignment with the team dedicated to strategic due diligence for Private Equity funds. Benoit graduated from HEC.

Andrew Winston, Founder of Winston Eco-Strategies and renowned author, is a globally-recognized expert on how companies can navigate and profit from humanity’s biggest challenges.
His views on strategy have been sought after by many of the world’s leading companies, including HP, J&J, Kimberly-Clark, PepsiCo, PwC and Unilever. Mr. Winston’s latest book, “The Big Pivot,” was selected as one of the “Best Business Books” by Strategy+Business Magazine.
He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Economics and Masters in Environmental Management from Yale University, as well as an MBA from Columbia University.

Currently Director of the l’Académie Durable Internationale and specialist in sustainable development management, Patrick d’Humières has been involved in major national and international initiatives since their inception– including Global Compact, IIRC, and ISO 26000.
A graduate of Sciences-Po, Mr. d’Humières is Director of “Master Class 21,” teaches at Sciences Po and HEC, and leads the Campus Durable de Casablanca and the community of responsible managers (MR21).

Dr. Monsou Tantawy is General Secretary at Oikocredit in France, where she’s in charge of international relations, and President of Unicef Paris.
She previously worked as a director with the World Business Council for Sustainable Development and as Vice President of Operational Efficiency for Unilever, following a career with Danone and Nabisco. Dr. Tantawy was EFQM lead assessor and chairman of the EFQM Executive Committee.
Dr. Monsou Tantawy holds a PhD in Biochemistry from Paris-Sud University.

Uwe Schulte, CEO of Prosolvo GmbH and Global Sustainability Centre Leader, spent a large part of his career at Unilever, where he held a number of different roles from product developer, production manager, general supply chain manager to vice president of Global Supply Management.

John Elkington is the Co-Founder and Executive Chairman of Volans Ventures, a change agency which encourages leaders to look beyond incremental change toward systemic challenges.
Mr. Elkington is leading a two-year program in partnership with the United Nations Global Compact focusing on the market opportunities around exponential sustainability, titled Project Breakthrough. He is also honorary chairman of SustainAbility and sits on an A-Z of some 30 boards and advisory boards.
He holds an MPhil in Urban Planning from University College London.

Yvonne Zwick, theologian and Chairwoman of B.A.U.M. e.V., has held various positions in the office of the German Council for Sustainable Development, an advisory body to the German Federal Government for 16 years. She contributes to the European sustainability reporting standard for SMEs in the expert working group of the European Financial Reporting Advisory Group – EFRAG, represents B.A.U.M. in relevant stakeholder groups of the German Federal Government, holds various mandates and is a part-time lecturer at Mannheim Business School.

Atalay Atasu, Professor of Technology and Operations Management and Bianca and James Pitt Chair in Environmental Sustainability at INSEAD, studies sustainable business models, circular economy, and renewable energy. He has extensively published in top academic outlets as well practitioner outlets such as Harvard Business Review. His research has been frequently recognized by academia and practice by research awards. He continues to serve academia in leadership and editorial roles and enjoys working with industrial organizations to create and disseminate new knowledge.

Dr. Alexander Nick is WBCSD’s Director for Climate Action. He holds 20 years of experience working across countries and industries on corporate sustainability. Prior to joining WBCSD, he worked at BMW Group heading the Climate Strategy and ESG Standards. Alex also worked as a Director for SustainAbility in London, a global strategy consultancy and think tank, and as a research associate for IMD Lausanne. Alex completed a PhD in strategic management and holds a major in business administration and electrical engineering. He is a member of various sustainability organizations, including the German Association of the Club of Rome and the Responsible Leaders Network of the BMW Foundation.

Tim Mohin brings four decades of sustainability leadership in Fortune 500 companies, government and ESG standards. Currently Partner and Director of Climate and Sustainability at Boston Consulting Group, he focuses on climate mitigation, the ESG value proposition, and ethical supply chains. Previously, Tim served as CEO of the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), EVP and CSO at Persefoni, and sustainability leadership roles at Intel, Apple and AMD, as well as the US EPA and US Senate. Tim is also the author of “Changing Business from the Inside Out” and is consistently recognized in the top 20 Corporate Social Responsibility Influence Leaders. Tim received a Masters Degree from Duke University in environmental management.