Senior International Sustainability Director

Role Purpose & Context

Role Summary

The Senior International Sustainability Director is here to own and lead specific sustainability workstreams across our global operations. You'll be the expert, taking complex regulatory demands—like the EU's CSRD or new supply chain due diligence laws—and figuring out how we actually apply them in practice. This role sits right at the intersection of our global operations and the ever-changing world of ESG reporting and compliance, making sure our sites know what they need to do and that we're collecting the right data. When you do this well, we're not just compliant; we're ahead of the curve, our brand reputation is solid, and our operational risks are genuinely reduced. Mess it up, and we're looking at fines, reputational damage, and a lot of headaches for the legal team. The tricky part is getting everyone on board, from plant managers to procurement teams, when they've got their own priorities. The reward? Seeing tangible improvements in our environmental footprint and knowing your work helps us build a more responsible business, globally.

Reporting Structure

• Reports to: Regional Sustainability Manager
• Direct reports: You won't have direct reports, but you'll typically mentor 1-2 junior team members or new joiners. Think of it as guiding them through the ropes rather than managing their performance.
• Matrix relationships: Senior Sustainability Specialist, Lead ESG Analyst, Sustainability Programme Manager, Senior Compliance & ESG Advisor,

Key Stakeholders

Internal:

• Regional Operations Directors (EMEA, APAC, Americas)
• Global Supply Chain & Procurement teams
• Legal & Compliance department
• Product Development & R&D teams
• Finance (for budget and investment cases)
• Corporate Communications & Marketing (for external reporting)

External:

• Third-party auditors (e.g., Big 4 firms for assurance)
• Sustainability reporting platform vendors
• Industry associations and working groups
• Key suppliers and business partners

Organisational Impact

Scope: This role directly influences our ability to meet global sustainability targets, manage regulatory risks, and maintain our social license to operate. Your work ensures we have robust, auditable processes for ESG data, which is critical for investor confidence and brand reputation. Frankly, without someone owning these specific domains, we'd be scrambling to keep up with new laws and struggling to prove our claims to the outside world.

Performance Metrics

Quantitative Metrics

1. Metric: GHG Data Consolidation Efficiency
2. Desc: The average time it takes to consolidate annual Scope 1 & 2 GHG emissions data from all global sites.
3. Target: Reduce average consolidation time by 20% year-over-year through process improvements and automation.
4. Freq: Annually, after reporting cycle closure.
5. Example: If last year it took 10 weeks to get all Scope 1 & 2 data verified, we'd expect you to get that down to 8 weeks this year, perhaps by streamlining data collection forms or improving site training.
6. Metric: ISO 14001 Certification Success Rate
7. Desc: The number of facilities successfully achieving or re-certifying to ISO 14001 (Environmental Management System) under your guidance.
8. Target: Successfully lead 2-3 facilities through ISO 14001 certification or re-certification annually.
9. Freq: Annually, based on audit outcomes.
10. Example: You'll be the driving force behind two of our European plants getting their ISO 14001 re-certification this year, ensuring they pass with flying colours and minimal non-conformities.
11. Metric: Supplier Due Diligence Response Rate
12. Desc: The percentage of key suppliers who complete and return required sustainability due diligence questionnaires or assessments.
13. Target: Achieve a >85% supplier response rate for supply chain due diligence campaigns.
14. Freq: Per campaign (typically quarterly or bi-annually).
15. Example: For our Q2 supplier survey, you'll need to ensure that at least 85% of our top 100 suppliers submit their completed environmental and social impact data.
16. Metric: Regulatory Compliance Readiness
17. Desc: The percentage of relevant operations that are fully prepared for new or updated sustainability regulations (e.g., CSRD, CSDDD).
18. Target: Ensure 95% of impacted global operations have documented plans and processes in place for upcoming regulatory changes 3 months before effective date.
19. Freq: Quarterly review against regulatory horizon.
20. Example: By June, you'll have worked with our EMEA sites to ensure they're 95% ready for the new CSRD reporting requirements coming into effect in January, meaning data systems are set up and teams are trained.

Qualitative Metrics

1. Metric: Cross-Functional Influence & Collaboration
2. Desc: Your ability to get different teams (Operations, Procurement, Legal) to genuinely buy into and act on sustainability initiatives, even when it's not their primary focus.
3. Evidence: You're regularly sought out for advice on sustainability matters by other department leads. You're able to secure resources (time, budget) from other teams for your projects. You're seen as a trusted partner, not just 'the sustainability person'.
4. Metric: Problem-Solving & Practical Implementation
5. Desc: How effectively you can take a complex sustainability challenge or regulatory requirement and break it down into actionable steps that our global sites can actually implement.
6. Evidence: You're consistently proposing pragmatic solutions to data collection hurdles or operational challenges. Your project plans are clear, achievable, and well-received by operational teams. You can troubleshoot issues on the ground and adapt plans when things don't go to script.
7. Metric: Knowledge Leadership & Mentorship
8. Desc: Your role as a subject matter expert, sharing knowledge and helping develop the capabilities of junior team members and other colleagues.
9. Evidence: You're regularly delivering training sessions or workshops on your domain expertise (e.g., LCA, GHG Protocol). Junior colleagues come to you for guidance and feel supported. Your insights are valued in team discussions and strategy sessions.
10. Metric: Data Integrity & Assurance Readiness
11. Desc: The quality and defensibility of the sustainability data you're responsible for, particularly in preparation for external assurance.
12. Evidence: Your data submissions consistently pass internal quality checks with minimal errors. External auditors find your documentation clear and comprehensive, leading to fewer queries and a smoother assurance process. You can articulate the data lineage for your metrics with confidence.

Primary Traits

• Trait: Influential
• Manifestation: You're the person who can get a sceptical plant manager in Thailand to adopt a new waste tracking system by showing them how it saves money, not just ticks an ESG box. You'll build a bulletproof business case for a new water recycling project, complete with ROI, and convince the CFO it's a smart investment. It's about getting people to change their long-standing ways, even when you don't have direct authority over them. You're a master of building consensus.
• Benefit: Truth is, this role carries huge responsibility, but you won't have a huge team reporting directly to you. Your success hinges entirely on your ability to persuade, educate, and build trust with colleagues across different departments and cultures. If you can't get people on board, even the best sustainability plan stays on paper.
• Trait: Pragmatic Idealist
• Manifestation: You're someone who genuinely believes in the power of sustainability to make a difference, but you also know the world isn't perfect. You'll passionately advocate for ambitious decarbonisation targets, but you'll also present a phased, cost-sensitive implementation plan that won't totally derail quarterly production. You can speak the language of ethical imperative, but you're just as comfortable talking about risk mitigation, operational efficiency, and brand value. It's about finding that sweet spot between what's right and what's realistically achievable.
• Benefit: Pure idealism often gets dismissed as 'fluffy' in a corporate setting. Pure pragmatism, on the other hand, rarely pushes for the necessary, transformative change. This role absolutely needs someone who can bridge that gap, translating big, ambitious sustainability goals into credible, financially sound business plans that actually get approved and implemented.
• Trait: Systematic Thinker
• Manifestation: You're the kind of person who can see how a decision to change a raw material in one of our Asian factories might affect our product's carbon footprint in Europe, and then how that impacts our CSRD disclosure requirements. You connect the dots between a minor safety incident at a site and a potential wider reputational risk for our investors globally. You don't just solve the immediate problem; you look for the root cause and understand the ripple effects.
• Benefit: Sustainability isn't a siloed topic; it's an interconnected web of environmental, social, and financial risks and opportunities. You absolutely must be able to see the entire value chain, anticipate second- and third-order consequences, and understand how different parts of our global business interact. Missing a connection can lead to unintended consequences or compliance failures.

Supporting Traits

• Trait: Resilient
• Desc: You'll need to bounce back quickly when a major sustainability initiative gets de-funded or delayed, or when a site pushes back on a data request. It's not always easy, and you'll face setbacks, but you'll pick yourself up and find another way forward.
• Trait: Diplomatic
• Desc: You'll often find yourself navigating the tension between, say, the legal team's cautious approach to public statements and the marketing team's desire to make bold claims about our green credentials. You'll need to be able to find common ground and mediate disagreements gracefully.
• Trait: Forensically Detail-Oriented
• Desc: You're the one who spots the unit conversion error in a GHG emissions spreadsheet that would have inflated our footprint by 10%, or catches the decimal point in the wrong place before it goes to the auditor. This means double-checking your own work and being meticulous with data.
• Trait: Insatiably Curious
• Desc: The world of sustainability is always changing. You'll proactively learn about emerging topics like biodiversity credits, nature-related financial disclosures (TNFD), or new circular economy models, bringing fresh ideas to the team. You don't wait to be told what to learn next.

Primary Motivators

1. Motivator: Making a Tangible Impact
2. Daily: You'll get a real buzz from seeing a new waste reduction programme you designed actually reduce landfill waste at a factory, or knowing that the data you've meticulously collected is being used to make real investment decisions. It's about seeing your work move beyond PowerPoints and into the real world.
3. Motivator: Solving Complex Global Puzzles
4. Daily: If you love taking a really knotty problem—like how to track Scope 3 emissions across a fragmented supply chain in 10 different countries—and breaking it down into a workable solution, you'll thrive here. It's about the intellectual challenge of figuring out 'how' we can meet ambitious goals.
5. Motivator: Being the Go-To Expert
6. Daily: You enjoy being the person colleagues turn to when they have a tricky question about a specific sustainability reporting standard or a complex LCA calculation. You like building and sharing your deep knowledge, and you're comfortable presenting your expertise to various audiences.

Potential Demotivators

Honestly, this role isn't for everyone. You'll spend a fair bit of time chasing, cleaning, and frankly, begging for basic operational data (like energy, water, waste figures) from our international sites. Many of them still use paper records or spreadsheets from the last decade, and getting them to adopt new systems can feel like pulling teeth. You'll hear 'My bonus is tied to production, not your carbon footprint' more often than you'd like from plant managers who see your requests as a distraction. The 'urgent' request that disrupted your Thursday might well get deprioritised on Friday because something else came up. You'll probably build a beautiful analysis or recommendation that never gets fully deployed because the business priorities shifted, or the budget was cut last minute. If you need to see every single piece of your work make it to production and have a clear, linear path to impact, you might struggle here.

Common Frustrations

1. The Global Data Scavenger Hunt: Spending 60% of your time chasing and cleaning basic operational data from 40+ international sites, many with legacy systems.
2. Operational Resistance: Dealing with plant managers who view your data requests and initiatives as a distraction from their 'real job' of hitting production targets.
3. The 'Cost Centre' Stigma: Constantly having to justify budget and headcount while being perceived as a non-revenue-generating compliance function.
4. Performative Leadership: Enduring executives who make inspiring speeches about climate change, then reject the CapEx request for the factory upgrades needed to meet those targets.
5. Alphabet Soup Overload: The mental fatigue of keeping track of and explaining the differences between CSRD, ESRS, IFRS S1, IFRS S2, GRI, SASB, TCFD, TNFD, CSDDD, and CBAM.
6. Assurance Nightmare: The immense pressure of preparing data for third-party assurance, knowing a single unsubstantiated number could undermine the entire sustainability report.

What Role Doesn't Offer

1. A quiet, predictable 9-to-5 where you can just focus on your own work without interruption.
2. Direct authority over large teams or significant budgets (initially, at least).
3. A role where you only deal with 'green' people who are already fully bought into sustainability.
4. A chance to build complex data models without getting your hands dirty with messy, incomplete data first.
5. A job where you're always popular; sometimes you'll be asking people to do things they don't want to do.

ADHD Positives

1. The constant variety of projects and regulatory changes means you're rarely bored; there's always something new to dive into. The need to juggle multiple tasks and respond to urgent requests can suit those who thrive on dynamic environments.
2. The 'global data scavenger hunt' might appeal to your hyperfocus, turning a chore into an engaging puzzle to solve. The drive for impact and problem-solving can be highly motivating.

ADHD Challenges and Accommodations

1. The meticulous detail required for data assurance and regulatory compliance can be challenging; we'd support you with clear checklists, templates, and pairing with a detail-focused colleague for reviews.
2. Managing multiple deadlines and chasing data from different sites might require strong organisational tools and regular check-ins to help prioritise. We can offer flexible scheduling for deep work and help with task management systems.

Dyslexia Positives

1. Your ability to see the 'big picture' and connect disparate pieces of information (systematic thinking) is a huge asset in sustainability, where everything is interconnected. You'll be great at spotting patterns and overarching trends that others might miss.
2. The role involves a lot of verbal communication, influencing, and problem-solving, which often aligns well with dyslexic strengths. We value your creative approaches to complex challenges.

Dyslexia Challenges and Accommodations

1. The heavy emphasis on detailed written reports, regulatory documents, and data entry can be demanding; we use tools like Grammarly, offer proofreading support, and encourage dictation software.
2. Complex regulatory texts can be difficult to parse; we'd ensure you have access to summarisation tools and colleagues who can help break down dense legal language into key points. We're happy to use visual aids and diagrams in meetings.

Autism Positives

1. The systematic thinking and logical approach required to map out complex supply chains, build robust data models, and ensure regulatory compliance can be a strong fit. Your ability to focus deeply on specific domains and become a true expert is highly valued.
2. A preference for clear, direct communication (when possible) can cut through corporate jargon and lead to more efficient problem-solving. We appreciate honest and factual assessments.

Autism Challenges and Accommodations

1. The need for constant cross-functional influence and navigating complex social dynamics can be draining; we'd support you with structured communication channels, clear meeting agendas, and opportunities for independent work.
2. Unexpected changes in priorities or urgent requests can be disruptive; we aim for clear communication about changes and provide structured tools for prioritisation. We also offer quiet workspaces and noise-cancelling headphones.

Key Responsibilities

Experience Levels Responsibilities

1. Level: Senior International Sustainability Director (L3)
2. Responsibilities: Lead the end-to-end implementation of specific global sustainability programmes, like our Scope 3 emissions reduction roadmap or the roll-out of a new water stewardship initiative across multiple international sites. This means defining the project plan, getting buy-in, and seeing it through to completion.
3. Design and implement robust data collection methodologies for your assigned sustainability domains (e.g., GHG emissions, waste, water, human rights due diligence). You'll create the templates, train the site teams, and ensure the data is accurate and auditable for external assurance.
4. Act as the company's subject matter expert on specific sustainability reporting frameworks (e.g., CSRD, IFRS S2, GRI Standards) or technical areas (e.g., Life Cycle Assessment, Science-Based Targets). You'll translate these complex requirements into clear, actionable guidance for internal teams.
5. Mentor 1-2 junior sustainability analysts. This usually involves reviewing their work, helping them troubleshoot tricky data problems, and guiding them through complex regulatory interpretations. You're helping them grow, not just delegating tasks.
6. Represent the company in relevant industry working groups or external forums related to your area of expertise. You'll bring back insights and best practices, and sometimes you'll be presenting our own progress. Expect to be a voice for the organisation.
7. Conduct detailed materiality assessments for specific business units or product lines, identifying key ESG risks and opportunities. You'll then make recommendations to leadership on how to prioritise these findings and integrate them into business strategy.
8. Prepare and present detailed sustainability performance reports and analyses to various internal stakeholders, including regional leadership, supply chain teams, and legal. They'll ask tough questions, so your data and narrative need to be solid.
9. Supervision: You'll typically have bi-weekly check-ins with your Regional Sustainability Manager, or more frequently when you're leading a critical project. You're expected to work quite independently, but you'll always have support for strategic decisions or major roadblocks. We trust you to get on with it.
10. Decision: You've got full technical decision-making authority within your project scope—things like choosing the best methodology for a Life Cycle Assessment or deciding on the most effective data collection tool. You can recommend budget allocations up to, say, £10K for specific tools or training, but anything above that needs approval. You'll consult your manager on significant changes to project timelines or scope, especially if it impacts other departments. You're empowered to make things happen, but within a clear framework.
11. Success: You'll know you're succeeding when your global programmes are hitting their targets, our data for your domain is consistently auditable, and you're seen as the go-to expert by colleagues across the business. When auditors have fewer questions about your data, that's a big win. Also, when your mentees are growing and asking smarter questions, you're doing it right.

Decision-Making Authority

• Type: Methodology Selection for LCA
• Entry: Follows pre-defined methodology; escalates any deviations to supervisor.
• Mid: Chooses appropriate methodology from a set of approved options; consults manager for novel situations.
• Senior: Designs and justifies the most appropriate LCA methodology from scratch, considering project goals and data availability; informs manager of approach.
• Type: Data Collection Process Design
• Entry: Executes data collection using existing templates and processes.
• Mid: Suggests minor improvements to existing data collection templates; escalates major process changes.
• Senior: Designs and implements new global data collection processes for specific sustainability metrics, including training and validation protocols; consults manager on resource needs.
• Type: Supplier Engagement Strategy
• Entry: Supports supplier outreach by sending pre-written emails and tracking responses.
• Mid: Manages outreach for a segment of suppliers; proposes follow-up actions for non-responders.
• Senior: Develops the overall strategy for engaging key suppliers on sustainability due diligence, including communication plans and escalation pathways; seeks approval for significant resource commitments.
• Type: Regulatory Interpretation & Guidance
• Entry: Looks up specific regulatory clauses; asks supervisor for interpretation.
• Mid: Interprets routine regulatory updates and applies them to specific site operations; escalates complex or ambiguous cases.
• Senior: Provides expert interpretation of complex new regulations (e.g., ESRS) and develops practical, actionable guidance for global business units; informs legal and compliance teams.

Competency Requirements

Foundation Skills (Transferable)

These are the bedrock skills that let you operate effectively in any senior role, but especially one that demands influencing across a global business. You'll need to be sharp, adaptable, and able to get your point across clearly.

• Category: Communication & Influence
• Skills: Cross-Cultural Communication: You'll be working with teams from Germany to Japan. This means understanding different communication styles, cultural nuances, and adapting your approach to get your message across effectively, whether it's a formal presentation or a casual chat.
• Persuasion & Negotiation: You'll often need to convince stakeholders to adopt new processes or allocate resources for sustainability initiatives. This isn't about dictating; it's about building a compelling case, addressing concerns, and finding common ground.
• Presentation & Storytelling: You need to be able to take complex sustainability data and regulations and turn them into clear, engaging presentations for various audiences, from site managers to legal teams. It's about making the 'why' clear and compelling.
• Active Listening: Before you can influence, you need to understand. This means genuinely listening to concerns from operational teams, understanding their challenges, and incorporating their feedback into your solutions.
• Category: Problem-Solving & Critical Thinking
• Skills: Complex Problem Decomposition: Taking a huge, ambiguous problem (like 'how do we reduce Scope 3 emissions by 30%?') and breaking it down into manageable, actionable steps. This is about structured thinking and not getting overwhelmed.
• Root Cause Analysis: When things go wrong, or data looks odd, you'll need to dig deep to find out *why*. This means going beyond the surface symptoms to address the underlying issues, whether it's a process flaw or a data entry error.
• Strategic Prioritisation: With so many regulations and initiatives, you'll need to figure out what truly matters most for the business and the planet. This involves weighing risks, opportunities, and resource constraints to focus on the highest impact areas.
• Data Interpretation & Validation: You won't just pull numbers; you'll question them. You'll need to spot inconsistencies, understand data limitations, and interpret what the figures actually mean in a business context, especially when preparing for assurance.
• Category: Adaptability & Resilience
• Skills: Navigating Ambiguity: The sustainability landscape is constantly shifting. You'll need to be comfortable working with incomplete information, adapting plans on the fly, and making sound judgments even when the path isn't perfectly clear.
• Change Management: You'll be driving change across the organisation. This means understanding how people react to new processes, anticipating resistance, and helping teams through the transition, often without direct authority.
• Pressure Handling: There will be tight deadlines, urgent requests, and sometimes intense scrutiny from auditors or senior leadership. You'll need to keep a cool head and perform effectively under pressure, especially during reporting cycles.
• Learning Agility: The regulatory landscape and best practices in sustainability are always evolving. You need to be a continuous learner, quickly picking up new concepts, frameworks, and technologies to stay ahead.
• Category: Leadership & Mentorship
• Skills: Project Leadership: You'll be leading multi-stakeholder projects, even if you don't have direct reports. This means defining objectives, coordinating tasks, managing timelines, and ensuring successful delivery, often with virtual teams.
• Coaching & Development: You'll be mentoring junior colleagues, helping them grow their skills and navigate challenges. This involves providing constructive feedback, sharing your knowledge, and empowering them to take ownership.
• Building Trust & Credibility: Establishing yourself as a reliable and knowledgeable expert across the organisation. This comes from consistent delivery, clear communication, and a willingness to help others succeed.
• Initiative & Proactivity: You won't wait to be told what to do next. You'll identify problems, propose solutions, and take ownership of driving improvements, always looking for ways to enhance our sustainability performance.

Functional Skills (Role-Specific Technical)

These are the specific methodologies, tools, and industry knowledge you'll need to apply day-to-day. This is where your deep expertise really comes into play.

Technical Competencies

• Skill: Materiality Assessment (Double Materiality)
• Desc: You'll lead the process of identifying and prioritising ESG topics, not just based on what affects our business financially, but also our impact on society and the environment. This is crucial for defining our reporting scope and strategy under frameworks like CSRD.
• Level: Advanced
• Skill: Sustainability Reporting Frameworks
• Desc: You'll be the go-to person for applying global standards like GRI, IFRS S1/S2 (which includes SASB & TCFD), and especially the EU's CSRD and its ESRS. This means understanding the nuances of each and how to practically gather and report the required data.
• Level: Advanced
• Skill: GHG Protocol & Carbon Accounting
• Desc: You'll master calculating Scope 1 (direct), Scope 2 (electricity), and the notoriously tricky Scope 3 (value chain) emissions. This includes setting and tracking progress against Science-Based Targets (SBTi) and helping develop our decarbonisation roadmaps.
• Level: Expert
• Skill: Life Cycle Assessment (LCA)
• Desc: You'll build complex product LCAs from scratch, interpret the results, perform sensitivity analysis, and be able to defend your methodology to external auditors. This helps us understand the true environmental impact of our products.
• Level: Expert
• Skill: ISO Management Systems (14001, 45001)
• Desc: You'll have expertise in implementing and maintaining certification for key standards like ISO 14001 (Environmental Management) and ISO 45001 (Occupational Health & Safety), and understanding how to integrate them into our broader business management system.
• Level: Advanced
• Skill: Supply Chain Due Diligence
• Desc: You'll design and implement processes to identify, prevent, and mitigate adverse human rights and environmental impacts within our global supply chain, aligning with regulations like the German Supply Chain Act or the proposed CSDDD.
• Level: Advanced

Digital Tools

• Tool: EHS & Sustainability Platforms (e.g., Enablon, Sphera, Cority)
• Level: Advanced
• Usage: Configuring data collection forms, building custom dashboards for tracking SBTi progress, training site-level users, and troubleshooting data discrepancies across our global operations. You'll be the power user.
• Tool: LCA Software (e.g., SimaPro, GaBi, Sphera LCA)
• Level: Expert
• Usage: Building complex product LCAs from scratch, running 'what if' scenarios, interpreting detailed results, and preparing reports that explain the environmental impacts of our products to R&D teams and external auditors.
• Tool: Reporting & Disclosure Platforms (e.g., Workiva, OneTrust ESG, Persefoni)
• Level: Advanced
• Usage: Managing the entire data-to-disclosure workflow, setting up review processes, creating data lineage maps, and preparing the system for third-party assurance for our annual sustainability report.
• Tool: Regulatory Intelligence Platforms (e.g., Enhesa, C2P by Compliance & Risks)
• Level: Advanced
• Usage: Creating tailored legal registers for specific regions, analysing the impact of proposed legislation on our operations, and briefing regional teams on upcoming compliance obligations and deadlines.
• Tool: Data Analytics & Visualisation (e.g., Power BI, Tableau, Advanced Excel)
• Level: Expert
• Usage: Connecting multiple data sources to build new interactive dashboards for tracking specific ESG KPIs (e.g., waste intensity, water usage), using Power Query for complex data transformation, and presenting clear insights to stakeholders.
• Tool: Board Reporting Platforms (e.g., Diligent, Nasdaq Boardvantage)
• Level: Basic
• Usage: Preparing and uploading final PDF reports or PowerPoint slides into the system for board meetings. You won't be managing the platform, but you'll ensure your content is ready for it.

Industry Knowledge

• Area: Circular Economy Principles
• Desc: Understanding concepts like 'design for disassembly', 'product-as-a-service', and 'resource efficiency' to help identify opportunities for waste reduction and material optimisation in our products and operations.
• Area: Climate Science Fundamentals
• Desc: A solid grasp of climate change science, including global warming potential, carbon sinks, and the urgency of decarbonisation, to underpin our climate strategy and target setting.
• Area: Human Rights & Labour Standards
• Desc: Knowledge of international human rights conventions and labour standards (e.g., ILO conventions) to inform our supply chain due diligence and social impact assessments.
• Area: Water Stewardship & Scarcity
• Desc: Understanding water risks, local water stress, and best practices in water management, especially for our water-intensive operations or those in water-stressed regions.

Regulatory Compliance Regulations

• Reg: EU Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) & ESRS
• Usage: You'll be instrumental in translating CSRD's double materiality and detailed ESRS requirements into actionable data collection and reporting processes for our EU-based entities and global value chain. This is a big one.
• Reg: IFRS S1 (General Requirements for Disclosure of Sustainability-related Financial Information) & S2 (Climate-related Disclosures)
• Usage: Understanding how to align our disclosures with these new global standards, particularly incorporating TCFD and SASB principles, and ensuring our sustainability reporting meets investor expectations.
• Reg: German Supply Chain Due Diligence Act (LkSG)
• Usage: Designing and implementing due diligence processes to identify, prevent, and mitigate human rights and environmental risks within our supply chain, especially for our German operations and their global suppliers.
• Reg: EU Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM)
• Usage: Understanding the implications of CBAM for our imported goods and helping to track embedded emissions data to ensure compliance and identify potential cost impacts.
• Reg: EU Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD) - Proposed
• Usage: Monitoring the development of this directive and proactively preparing our internal processes and supply chain engagement strategies to meet anticipated requirements for human rights and environmental due diligence.

Essential Prerequisites

• A proven track record of 5-8 years in a dedicated sustainability, ESG, EHS, or compliance role, ideally within a multinational corporate environment or a relevant consulting firm.
• Demonstrable experience in leading sustainability projects or workstreams from conception to completion, showing clear impact and outcomes.
• Solid experience in collecting, analysing, and reporting complex non-financial data, with a strong understanding of data integrity and assurance processes.
• Experience working with diverse global teams and navigating cross-cultural communication challenges.
• A strong understanding of at least two major sustainability reporting frameworks (e.g., GRI, SASB, TCFD, or early exposure to CSRD/ESRS).
• The ability to translate complex technical or regulatory information into clear, actionable guidance for non-experts.

Career Pathway Context

We're looking for someone who isn't just starting out. You should have a few years under your belt where you've owned specific processes or projects and are ready to step up and lead entire domains. This isn't an entry-level role where you'll be told exactly what to do; it's for someone who can take a problem, figure out the solution, and then drive its implementation across a global business. You'll have built up a solid foundation of technical knowledge and practical experience, and you're ready to apply it at a more strategic level.

Qualifications & Credentials

Emerging Foundation Skills

• Skill: Prompt Engineering & LLM Integration
• Why: Competitors are already using tools like ChatGPT and Claude to draft reports in minutes that used to take hours. Sustainability professionals who figure out how to effectively use Large Language Models (LLMs) will significantly outproduce their peers, freeing up time for higher-value strategic work.
• Concepts: [{'concept_name': 'Context Windows & Token Limits', 'description': 'Understanding how much information an AI can process at once and how to manage it for complex tasks.'}, {'concept_name': 'Temperature Settings for Different Tasks', 'description': 'Knowing when to make an AI more creative (higher temperature) versus more factual (lower temperature).'}, {'concept_name': 'RAG (Retrieval Augmented Generation) Architectures', 'description': 'Learning how to connect LLMs to our proprietary internal documents and data for more accurate, context-specific outputs.'}, {'concept_name': 'Output Validation & Hallucination Detection', 'description': "Developing critical skills to verify AI-generated content for accuracy and identify when the AI is 'making things up'."}, {'concept_name': 'Prompt Chaining for Complex Analysis', 'description': 'Breaking down large tasks into a series of smaller, linked prompts to guide the AI through multi-step problem-solving.'}]
• Prepare: This week: Set up a personal account with ChatGPT or Claude and use it for every piece of writing (emails, summaries, first drafts of reports).
• This month: Experiment with using an LLM to summarise a complex regulatory document (e.g., a chapter of ESRS) and compare its output to your own summary.
• Month 2: Explore how to connect an LLM to a small internal dataset (e.g., a few months of energy data) to ask questions and generate insights.
• Month 3: Document your productivity gains and share your findings and best practices with the wider sustainability team.
• QuickWin: Start using Claude or ChatGPT to draft email summaries, meeting minutes, or even initial bullet points for a report section today. No formal approval needed, immediate benefit to your workload.
• Skill: Biodiversity & Nature-related Disclosures (TNFD)
• Why: After climate, nature and biodiversity loss are rapidly becoming the next big focus for regulators and investors. The Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) framework is gaining traction, and we'll need to understand and apply it to assess our impacts and dependencies on nature.
• Concepts: [{'concept_name': 'LEAP Approach (Locate, Evaluate, Assess, Prepare)', 'description': 'The core methodology for identifying and assessing nature-related risks and opportunities.'}, {'concept_name': 'Nature-related Dependencies & Impacts', 'description': 'Understanding how our business relies on and affects natural ecosystems (e.g., water, land use, ecosystems).'}, {'concept_name': 'Ecosystem Services', 'description': 'The benefits that nature provides to humans, and how our operations might affect them.'}, {'concept_name': 'Biodiversity Offsets & Credits', 'description': 'Understanding the emerging market and methodologies for compensating for biodiversity loss.'}, {'concept_name': 'Geospatial Data for Nature Assessment', 'description': 'Using mapping and satellite data to assess nature risks at operational sites and in supply chains.'}]
• Prepare: This week: Read the executive summary of the TNFD framework and watch a couple of introductory webinars.
• This month: Identify 2-3 operational sites or key supply chain areas where nature-related risks might be significant for our business.
• Month 2: Research how other companies in our sector are starting to approach TNFD or biodiversity reporting.
• Month 3: Propose a small pilot project to apply the LEAP approach to one of our sites, even if it's just a desktop assessment.
• QuickWin: Start following TNFD updates and relevant biodiversity news. Talk to our R&D teams about any nature-based solutions they're exploring in product development.

Advancing Technical Skills

• Skill: Advanced EHS & Sustainability Platform Optimisation
• Why: As our sustainability data needs grow and regulations become more complex (e.g., granular ESRS data points), simply using the platform won't be enough. You'll need to optimise its configuration, integrate it with other systems, and ensure it's future-proof.
• Concepts: [{'concept_name': 'API Integration for Data Flow', 'description': 'Connecting the platform to ERP systems (like SAP S/4HANA) or other operational databases to automate data ingestion.'}, {'concept_name': 'Advanced Workflow Automation', 'description': 'Designing and implementing complex automated workflows for data validation, approval, and reporting within the platform.'}, {'concept_name': 'Custom Module Development (low-code/no-code)', 'description': "Using the platform's native tools to build bespoke modules for unique data collection or reporting needs that aren't standard."}, {'concept_name': 'Data Governance & Quality Frameworks', 'description': 'Establishing robust rules and processes within the platform to ensure data accuracy, consistency, and auditability across all global users.'}]
• Prepare: This week: Explore the 'advanced settings' or 'admin console' of our current EHS platform.
• This month: Take an online course or attend a vendor webinar on advanced features or API capabilities of our platform.
• Month 2: Work with our IT team to understand potential integration points between the EHS platform and other core business systems.
• Month 3: Propose one specific optimisation project for the platform that would save significant time or improve data quality.
• QuickWin: Identify one manual data entry process in the platform that could be automated or streamlined with existing features; then, just do it.
• Skill: Advanced Predictive Analytics for Sustainability Risks
• Why: Moving beyond just reporting historical data, we'll need to anticipate future sustainability risks (e.g., supply chain disruptions from climate events, regulatory non-compliance) and opportunities. This means using data to forecast and model scenarios.
• Concepts: [{'concept_name': 'Time Series Analysis for Environmental Data', 'description': 'Forecasting future emissions, water usage, or waste generation based on historical trends and external factors.'}, {'concept_name': 'Scenario Modelling for Climate Risk', 'description': 'Building models to assess the financial and operational impact of different climate scenarios (e.g., 1.5°C vs. 2°C warming) on our business.'}, {'concept_name': 'Regression Analysis for Impact Drivers', 'description': 'Identifying the key factors (e.g., production volume, energy mix) that drive our environmental impacts and how changes in these factors will affect our footprint.'}, {'concept_name': 'Geospatial Risk Mapping', 'description': 'Using geographical data to identify areas of high water stress, biodiversity risk, or social vulnerability in our operations and supply chain.'}]
• Prepare: This week: Refresh your knowledge of basic statistical concepts (regression, correlation).
• This month: Take an online course on predictive analytics or time series forecasting using Excel or Python.
• Month 2: Apply a simple forecasting model to one of our internal environmental datasets (e.g., energy consumption) to predict next quarter's usage.
• Month 3: Present your findings and discuss how predictive insights could inform our sustainability strategy.
• QuickWin: Start using the 'forecast' function in Excel on a simple dataset (like monthly waste figures) to get a feel for future trends.

Education Requirements

• Level: Minimum
• Req: A Bachelor's degree in a relevant field such as Environmental Science, Environmental Engineering, Sustainability Management, Business Administration (with a sustainability focus), or a related discipline.
• Alts: We're pragmatic. If you don't have a degree but have 8+ years of directly relevant, demonstrable experience in a senior sustainability role, we'd still be keen to hear from you. Show us what you've done, not just where you went to school.
• Level: Preferred
• Req: A Master's degree in a sustainability-related field (e.g., MSc Environmental Management, MBA with ESG specialisation) or a relevant professional qualification.
• Alts: While not essential, a postgraduate qualification often shows a deeper theoretical understanding and commitment to the field, which can be a real advantage.

Experience Requirements

You'll need roughly 5-8 years of dedicated, hands-on experience in a sustainability, ESG, EHS, or compliance role within a complex, preferably international, organisation. This isn't just about being aware of sustainability; it's about having led projects, managed data, and influenced outcomes. We're looking for someone who has genuinely 'done the doing' and is ready to step up and own entire domains. Experience working across different geographies and cultures is a huge plus, as is a track record of translating regulatory requirements into practical operational plans.

Preferred Certifications

• Cert: GRI Certified Sustainability Professional
• Prod: Global Reporting Initiative (GRI)
• Usage: Demonstrates a deep understanding of the most widely used sustainability reporting standards, which is crucial for our external disclosures and data quality.
• Cert: SASB FSA (Fundamentals of Sustainability Accounting) Credential
• Prod: SASB (Sustainability Accounting Standards Board)
• Usage: Shows a strong grasp of financially material sustainability issues and how they impact business value, which is key for investor relations and IFRS S2 alignment.
• Cert: ISO 14001 Lead Auditor / Implementer
• Prod: Various accredited bodies (e.g., BSI, LRQA)
• Usage: Proves practical expertise in environmental management systems, which is vital for guiding our operational sites through certification and continuous improvement.
• Cert: Science Based Targets (SBTi) Training / Certification
• Prod: SBTi (Science Based Targets initiative)
• Usage: Indicates a solid understanding of how to set and manage ambitious, science-aligned climate targets, a core part of our decarbonisation strategy.

Recommended Activities

• Actively participate in industry webinars, conferences, and working groups related to emerging sustainability regulations (e.g., CSRD, CSDDD, TNFD).
• Subscribe to key sustainability news outlets and regulatory updates to stay ahead of the curve.
• Seek out opportunities to present your work internally or externally, honing your communication and influence skills.
• Undertake specific training in advanced data analytics or visualisation tools if you feel your skills need a boost in those areas.
• Mentor junior colleagues or participate in cross-functional project teams to broaden your leadership experience.

Career Progression Pathways

Entry Paths to This Role

• Path: From Sustainability Analyst (L2)
• Time: 2-3 years as an analyst
• Path: From EHS Specialist (L2/L3) with ESG Focus
• Time: 3-5 years in EHS
• Path: From Environmental Consultant (Junior/Mid-Level)
• Time: 3-6 years in consulting

Career Progression From This Role

• Pathway: Lead Sustainability Strategist (L4)
• Time: 3-5 years in this Senior role
• Pathway: Regional Sustainability Manager (L5)
• Time: 4-6 years in this Senior role

Long Term Vision Potential Roles

• Title: International Sustainability Director (L6)
• Time: 5-10 years from this role
• Title: Chief Sustainability & Compliance Officer (CSCO) (L7)
• Time: 10-15+ years from this role
• Title: Head of ESG Consulting (External)
• Time: 8-12 years from this role

How Zavmo Delivers This Role's Development

DISCOVER Phase: Skills Gap Analysis

Zavmo maps your current competencies against all requirements in this job description through conversational assessment. We evaluate your foundation skills (communication, strategic thinking), functional skills (CRM expertise, negotiation), and readiness for career progression.

Output: Personalised skills gap heat map showing strengths and priorities, estimated time to competency, neurodiversity accommodations.

DISCUSS Phase: Personalised Learning Pathway

Based on your DISCOVER results, Zavmo creates a personalised learning plan prioritised by impact: foundation skills first, then functional skills. We adapt to your learning style, pace, and neurodiversity needs (ADHD, dyslexia, autism).

Output: Week-by-week schedule, each module linked to specific job responsibilities, checkpoints and milestones.

DELIVER Phase: Conversational Learning

Learn through conversation, not boring modules. Zavmo uses 10 conversation types (Socratic dialogue, role-play, coaching, case studies) to build competence. Practice difficult QBR presentations, negotiate tough renewals, and handle churn conversations in a safe AI environment before facing real clients.

Example: "For 'Stakeholder Mapping', Zavmo will guide you through analysing a complex enterprise account, identifying key decision-makers, and building an engagement strategy."

DEMONSTRATE Phase: Competency Assessment

Zavmo automatically builds your evidence portfolio as you learn. Every conversation, practice scenario, and application example is captured and mapped to NOS performance criteria. When ready, your portfolio supports OFQUAL qualification claims and demonstrates competence to employers.

Output: Competency matrix, evidence portfolio (downloadable), qualification readiness, career progression score.