(Bloomberg) -- U.S. private-equity firm General Atlantic LP hired Cornelia Gomez as its first head of ESG and sustainability, according to people familiar with the matter.

Gomez, who previously oversaw environmental, social and governance investing at PAI Partners, will join General Atlantic in early April, the people said.

ESG executives are in high demand across the financial services industry as investors increasingly expect their fund managers to take sustainability factors into account. Other private-equity firms such as Apollo Global Management Inc. also recently hired their first sustainability chiefs. The development has helped drive up salaries for ESG professionals, with some even approaching seven-digit territory, according to London-based recruiters. 

Before working at PAI, Gomez did a stint as social compliance manager of Casino Group SA, PAI’s website shows.  

At General Atlantic, which oversees total assets of $86 billion, Gomez will work with the investment team to help screen for potential ESG issues and work with portfolio companies to improve their performance on issues like climate change. She will report into John Toriello, the firm’s head of transactions, who joined from Blackstone Inc. last year.

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