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Creating new roles in your ESG & Sustainability team?

  • Publish Date: Posted about 1 year ago

CREATING NEW ROLES IN YOUR ESG & SUSTAINABILITY TEAM?

Having been recruiting talent throughout the Corporate Environmental / Sustainability / ESG journey from what now seems like the dim, distant past (when we were founded 1993), we have seen every stage of the evolution into the modern ESG structure; including all the associated aspects of CNZ (Net Zero),CSRD, TCFD, Scopes 1,2,3, GHG Reporting, Nature Based Solutions, Social Value, Modern Slavery to name a few.

Our team have worked together for years, which might beg the question why haven’t we done something else in all that time…? We think the answer is simply that in this constantly evolving specialism, we are continuously challenged as recruitment professionals to continue unpicking the next conundrum. No two roles are ever entirely the same, with many roles brand new to market or bespoke to our client’s needs. And we love this challenge.

With the emergence of ESG and Sustainable Finance this has never been truer. We find ourselves often engaged in discussions with clients at a nascent stage of their process. Unsure what to call the role or simply without any hiring precedent to inform them of market conditions, salary ranges, available skillset mix, optimum recruitment process for the specialism and so on…..

We had a recent discussion which took in the interesting and thoroughly modern need to combine established financial skills, including formal accounting qualifications, with the technical knowledge and experience of working with non-financial reporting data in a corporate setting. Could this be achieved? What might it cost? How long might it take? Until you try to hire for this particular role for the first time you do not know.

What we have learnt through delivering specialist Executive Search & Sustainability recruitment is that these sorts of processes require a close relationship with our clients, sharing the information as it comes to light; informing, reviewing, and refining to move forward positively.

As with so many other things communication is key. If the available talent pool does not yet exist in the desired construct, breaking the role down into its essential parts and thinking about the skills the candidate might need to perform the role is key. This can be further picked up or developed to suit the role based on on-going market intelligence, and allows forward momentum working towards a positive outcome that fits each client situation.

As mandatory non-financial reporting will kick in for many organisations in the coming years, new business structures in ESG & Sustainability will emerge. The previous duties found in a Sustainability/ESG/Sustainable Investment roles have already increased significantly and will continue to. New talent and new thinking will be required on a case-by-case basis.

If you are creating new roles in your ESG & Sustainability function, we can help find your next great hire, contact us on: 01202 888986 or email us at: hello@allen-york.com