As stress will increase on firms to fulfill their local weather objectives, a lot will depend on the effectiveness of sustainability groups. To know how the position of the sustainability chief and performance evolves, we at GreenBiz have surveyed those that work within the career biennially since 2010. Our 2024 State of the Occupation survey is open.
In 15 years until now, there have been ebbs and flows, however right here’s a catch-up: Our most up-to-date survey outcomes confirmed the career to be stronger than ever, with most respondents from giant firms reporting will increase in headcount, and budgets. LinkedIn shared with us the “inexperienced” hiring charge accelerated forward of the general hiring charge — globally and in the US — on the time.
We’ve seen CEOs are extra concerned in sustainability initiatives, and extra sustainability staffers are appointed to departmental features, comparable to power and provide chain. Up subsequent: The ESG controller within the finance workplace. Ladies are completely on the rise within the discipline too, however — disappointingly — not essentially their comp.
What’s the most recent? We’ll publish our eighth State of the Occupation abstract and report of the outcomes, together with the most recent on sustainability budgets, staff sizes, and wage benchmarks, within the spring.
Right here’s a better take a look at three key themes that emerged through the years.
A brand new stress wave: CEO engagement
Sustainability pioneer John Elkington delineated the occasions of the final technology into three environmental “stress waves” of public opinion from 1961 to 2001. As referenced right here, every wave of activism was adopted by a downwave of falling public concern, whereas every successive wave considerably expanded the agendas of politics and enterprise. Elkington later referred to a “sustainability wave” starting in 2005 which reached its relative peak round 2012.
Our analysis confirmed the push for including full-time company sustainability leaders peaked in 2008, the identical yr Vainness Honest’s remaining “inexperienced difficulty” featured Madonna on the quilt. By 2012 the tempo of firms hiring their first sustainability chief had slowed even because the variety of firms publishing a sustainability report elevated. The rise in reporting may appear vital however its voluntary nature is in line with a downwave of stress through the 2010s. Our most up-to-date report, in 2022, indicated the beginning of a brand new stress wave as CEO engagement has elevated dramatically.
Supply: State of the Occupation 2022
We requested survey respondents to charge on a scale from 1 to 7 how concerned their CEO is within the firm’s sustainability program. These answering six or seven (“very engaged”) rose by 17 proportion factors. Elevated curiosity by CEOs and their boards could be attributed to higher stakeholder (and particularly shareholder) stress in addition to a rise in regulatory reporting necessities transferring from voluntary to necessary on points surrounding local weather change, greenwashing and human rights.
The professionalization of the career
Halfway via the final decade we observed that as the dimensions and mandate of the sustainability group expanded, sure function-specific duties (comparable to power administration) grew to become the main focus of a person or devoted staff and the sustainability chief moved on to juggling new forward-looking obligations. This gave mislead the phrase “I’m going to work myself out of my job,” as the reality is that almost all sustainability professionals are at all times working themselves into a brand new job.
In some areas, comparable to provide chain, firms are more and more embedding folks throughout the perform. In 2010, 10 p.c of these surveyed reported having sustainability assets embedded within the provide chain perform; that rose to 49 p.c by 2020. An analogous progress trajectory seems prepared for take-off as necessary reporting necessities are immediately ensuing within the formation of the ESG controller’s workplace, a job virtually unparalleled a yr in the past.
The opposite indicator as to the maturity of the career is the rise in exterior hires. Fifteen years in the past the sustainability chief was almost definitely an inner candidate with a longtime repute that allowed them to work throughout the group. At present you will discover chief sustainability officers standing up applications of their third group, comparable to Dave Stangis, Apollo International Administration funding advisory; Jill Kolling, James Hardie constructing supplies; and Lisa Brady, Insulet medical gadgets. (I’ll be speaking “How We Constructed This” with these three in a session at GreenBiz 24 in February.)
Ladies stand up
In 2010 males dominated on the highest ranges of sustainability, holding greater than two-thirds of the vice chairman roles and almost three-fifths of the director roles in giant firms. Compensation favored males as nicely. There was an 11 p.c hole between a feminine vice chairman’s common wage and a person’s and a 20 p.c hole between feminine and male administrators.
Supply: State of the Occupation 2022
There was a rise in gender range within the career over the previous 12 years. The variety of ladies in sustainability management roles has expanded for each administration class. The rising variety of ladies in sustainability shouldn’t be essentially mirrored of their compensation, nonetheless. Whereas feminine managers make barely greater than their male counterparts and compensation for vice presidents is at par, there’s a main compensation hole on the director stage.
What’s your take?
Tell us within the State of the Occupation survey right here. Or assist us get the best participation charge ever, and share the survey hyperlink together with your social networks and friends working in sustainability, CSR and ESG. It ought to take lower than 10 minutes to finish.
