It sounds straightforward. It rarely is. Here’s what to think about before you post that job ad.
Sustainability is landing on businesses from every direction right now. Regulation. Risk. Finance. Reporting. Customer expectations. Employee values. Supply chain compliance. Greenwashing risk. Carbon measurement. And the list keeps growing.
So it makes sense that the first instinct for many businesses is to hire someone to handle it. And in many cases, that’s absolutely the right call. But before you write the job description, there are a few important things worth getting clear on – because getting your first sustainability hire wrong is an expensive and frustrating experience.
First: understand what you actually need this person to do
Sustainability is not a single discipline. Depending on where your business is and where the pressure is coming from, your ‘sustainability person’ might need to be able to:
- Understand and respond to environmental regulation and compliance frameworks (like ISO 14001)
- Navigate and respond to ESG reporting requirements and investor expectations
- Measure and manage carbon emissions – including Scope 1, 2, and 3 under the GHG Protocol – as well as the systems and tools needed to do this
- Develop and implement a social value strategy and evidence community impact
- Lead internal engagement and culture change – getting colleagues to care and participate
- Manage supplier sustainability requirements and due diligence
- Handle external communications carefully to avoid greenwashing risk
- Support or lead B Corp certification, ISO accreditation, or other framework processes
One person cannot be a genuine expert in all of these. Understanding which of these is most urgent for your business right now is the essential first step.
Second: think carefully about who they should report into
This is one of the most commonly overlooked questions – and one that significantly affects how effective your sustainability person will be.
- Sustainability touches operations, HR, finance, communications, procurement, and the boardroom. Unlike most functions, it doesn’t sit neatly under one department.
- If they report to Operations, they may struggle to influence culture and people strategy. If they report to Marketing, they may lack the credibility to drive compliance and measurement.
- For more junior hires, a senior internal sponsor matters enormously. They need someone at leadership level who will open doors, prioritise time, and protect their mandate.
- Some businesses are choosing to have their sustainability lead report directly into the CEO or MD – particularly where sustainability is a strategic priority or commercial differentiator. This is worth considering.
Third: consider what ‘good’ looks like when your are hiring – and how you’ll recognise it in a candidate
Sustainability is a broad and evolving field, and qualifications vary enormously. Some of the most effective sustainability professionals we’ve encountered have backgrounds in science, law, operations, communications, or HR – not a traditional ‘environmental’ route.
- Look for commercial awareness alongside sustainability knowledge. The best hires understand that sustainability must serve the business, not just be done to it.
- Check for practical experience – someone who has actually implemented a carbon measurement programme, managed a certification process, or written a sustainability report – not just advised on them.
- Assess their communication skills carefully. A huge part of the role is influencing colleagues who don’t yet see sustainability as their concern. You need someone who can bring people along.
- Be realistic about what someone at the salary you’re offering can credibly deliver. Sustainability roles are still frequently underpaid relative to the breadth of expertise they require.
An alternative worth seriously considering: outsourced or hybrid support
Many businesses aren’t yet at the stage where a full-time internal hire makes sense – but they absolutely need sustainability expertise. An outsourced model, or a hybrid approach combining a junior internal person with external expert support, can be a very effective way to get the depth of knowledge you need without the risk of a mis-hire.
- External sustainability consultancies can often cover more ground than a single internal hire, drawing on specialist expertise across carbon, standards, social value, communications, and strategy.
- If you do hire internally, external support can be enormously valuable as a resource for your new hire – providing the technical knowledge, mentoring, and sounding board that they won’t always get internally.
- This kind of partnership also reduces the pressure on your internal person to know everything, which leads to better outcomes for everyone.
The bottom line
Hiring your first sustainability person is a significant decision. Done well, it accelerates your programme and embeds sustainability in the way your business thinks and operates. Done poorly, it creates frustration on both sides and sets you back.
Take the time to be clear about what you need, where this person will sit in the organisation, and what support structures you’ll put around them.
Not sure you’re ready for a full-time hire – or want support for the person you do bring in?
That’s exactly where Sustainable X comes in. We work with businesses as an outsourced sustainability partner – providing the expertise, structure, and technical knowledge that your internal team needs to succeed. Whether you’re building capacity from scratch, supporting a new hire, or bridging a gap while you recruit, we’re here to help.
Get in touch at www.sustainablex.co.uk – let’s work out what the right model looks like for your business.