Opportunity Alert: Corporate Sustainability Executives

You’d have to live under a rock not to have heard about global warming, the AIDS crisis and genocide in Africa. Thanks to movie stars and polebrities (politicians turned celebrities), we’re all in the throes of passion for the state of the environment and the treatment of pandemics and the preservation of human rights. Not a bad place to be. Socially and politically a great movement is afoot to develop business practices and consumer habits that are responsible and sustainable.

Now we can add a new dimension to the movement, the professional or career dimension. New professional career opportunities are emerging in the field of corporate responsibility and sustainability. In fact, the field itself is still emerging. But, the opportunities are already apparent.

DuPont recently named Linda J. Fisher as its Chief Sustainability Officer. Ford named Susan M. Cischke as its Senior VP, Sustainability, Environment and Safety Engineering. Lawrence J. Washington Jr. serves as Dow Chemical Corporation’s Corporate VP, Sustainability, Environment, Health and Safety. James Hagan serves as GlaxoSmithKline’s VP, Corporate Environment, Health and Safety. Companies such as Home Depot, HSBC, Dow Chemical, GE, Owens Corning and Tetra Pak are also in the process of developing sustainability programs. And, there are undoubtedly more jobs to come.

Titles vary. The terms “Sustainability”, “Environmental”, “Green” and “Responsibility” are used interchangeably. Examples include those above, and titles such as “Chief Green Officer” and Director of Corporate Responsibility.
Not every company will jump in at the C-Suite level. Most have opted for VP-level roles. But all seem to recognize that sustainability executives must be given high profile, powerful and influential positions within their companies in order to significantly effect change. Accordingly, there are no mentions of any positions below the Director level. And, most positions report directly to the CEO or president.

Sustainability executives are responsible for ensuring that their company’s products and services are designed, manufactured, and delivered in an environmentally- and socially- responsible manner. This is a big job when you consider the number of departments and functions that are affected. Everything from the purchasing of raw materials, the way the product is transported and marketed to the chemicals used to clean the equipment each evening can be affected.

Given this wide swath of responsibility, sustainability executives generally have direct and indirect reports that oversee environmental health and safety, energy, procurement, and regulatory affairs. Others also manage or influence logistics, product development and innovation, environmental stewardship, corporate communications and strategic partnerships.

The field is still in its infancy, so sustainability executives are somewhat free to develop their own agendas, metrics and missions. That’s important because it means that there is no absolute right skill set one must have in order to take advantage of this opportunity. However, candidates with prior work experience that includes environmental regulation, health and safety seem to have a leg up.

Personally, I’m betting that candidates who are currently leading corporate responsibility, logistics, manufacturing, quality control, product development and design and corporate communications departments may also be able make the transition rather smoothly.

Another bet. Al Gore won’t be the last celebrity whose fortune will be made on the green/sustainable movement. So, budding speakers, consultants, writers, PR folks, consumer advocates and watchdogs, get going!

Check out current environmental, sustainability jobs.