How to talk to companies about sustainability
Next, we are going to highlight what the “Career Advising & Professional Development” portal says.
Our goal is to prepare students to engage potential employers in a conversation about companies’ sustainability-related initiatives, practices, and employee opportunities.
On this web page, we provide students with questions to ask and suggestions on how to ask them.
The following recommendations were developed by the MIT Environmental Solutions Initiative. The Environmental Solutions Initiative is MIT’s institute-wide effort to address climate change and other environmental challenges of global importance, through multidisciplinary research, education, and engagement.
How to do questions:
– Think in advance about what you would like to learn from the recruiter. Next, create a list of questions you would like to ask, taking into account the time allotted for the conversation
– Think of your list of questions as a guide for the conversation, not as a fixed list that you must complete. It is better to actively listen and respond to the interviewee’s answers than to stick to the list.
– Listen, listen and listen
– Expect to spend at least 80% of your time listening, not talking.
– Be aware of time. It is helpful to let the person know a few minutes before the time is up. Sometimes they will want to continue talking, but let them decide.
– Being thankful. Be transparent and let them know that you are grateful for this opportunity.
– Be respectful. Your goal is not to question or judge the person you are speaking to, but to fill in your own gaps in knowledge.
What questions to ask any company or organization:
In theory, these could be yes or no answers, but better if no. Try to use them as a starting point to open up a broader discussion. Keep in mind two common acronyms:
ESG = Environmental, Social and Governance and
CSR = Corporate Social Responsibility.
– Does your company or organization…
– Do you have relevant credentials, construction certifications or memberships in the area of sustainability (such as B-Corp, LEED, FSC, member of the Science Based Targets Initiative or RE100, etc.)?
– Do they create products or provide services that are good for the environment?
– Do you have objectives and/or goals related to sustainability? If so, are they publicly available?
– Do you publish an annual impact report (sometimes called an ESG report or CSR report) that updates stakeholders on your progress toward your sustainability-related goals?
– Do you track your carbon footprint? If so, are you transparent about publicly disclosing your data (such as submitting it to the Carbon Disclosure Project (also known as CDP), being published in an annual impact report, etc.?
– Do they have a rating from any ESG rating agency (such as the Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI), Sustainalytics, FTSE4Good, Oekom, etc.)?
– publicly support national policies and policies at the local level, which focus on driving rapid decarbonization in line with the Paris Agreements?
– Do you work with manufacturers in your supply chain to help them move towards decarbonization?
Dialogue Starters: After starting with broader questions, move on to deeper ones.
– What does sustainability mean in your company or organization?
– How would you describe the perception of sustainability in your company or organization?
– How much value does your company or organization place on sustainability?
– How does sustainability fit into the strategy of your company or organization?
– What role does sustainability play in guiding product design?
– Is attention paid to sustainable practices in daily operations?
– What sustainability initiatives are a top priority for your company?
– What area(s) is your company or organization most interested in improving to increase its positive impact?
– Where do you organically place sustainability in your company or organization? Who oversees sustainability in your organization?
– How is your company or organization working to improve its carbon footprint?
– How does your company or organization incentivize investment or R&D in energy efficiency, renewable energy, zero-carbon technologies or other carbon reduction innovations?
– How does your company practice ethical investing?
– How does your organization educate employees about sustainability?
– How could I get involved with sustainability as an employee of your company or organization?
– Are employees rewarded for advancing sustainability issues and, if so, how?
– To what extent does your company strive to be a leader within its industry in terms of sustainability?
Some questions you can’t forget to ask
– Does your company or organization have job openings available where you can bring a sustainability approach to work?
– Are there specific jobs within the company that have a sustainability focus that I could apply for?
– What happens if a recruiter doesn’t have an answer?
Feel free to skip to another question if you think this is a dead end.
If not, you may be able to change the question to something the recruiter can answer. For example, instead of asking how the company as a whole addresses climate change, you could ask how people in the workplace incorporate sustainability into their work and actions.
If you’ve run out of questions or feel like the conversation is going in a direction that isn’t beneficial to you, it might be time to thank the recruiter for their time and go your own way.
How to get out of a conversation
– The main point is to leave politely and respectfully.
– Thank the recruiter for their time, shake their hand if appropriate, and then say goodbye.
-Keep in mind that neither party wants to waste time and that the recruiter will probably be happy to respect both their time and yours.
Questions for companies in specific sectors
There are some industries where it is appropriate to ask questions that are relevant to your particular line of work or operations.
Analyze recent industry-specific sustainability trends to tailor your questions to those that are most important to that sector.
What to ask future employers about sustainability and why
This contribution has been prepared by Jennifer Howard-Grenville, professor of business organization at Judge Business School, University of Cambridge, to which Joanne Tilley, strategy and sustainability consultant at Investec and MBA graduate of Cambridge Judge Business School, has contributed jointly. and by Priya Saikumar, PhD student and ESG consultant and MBA graduate of Cambridge Judge Business School.
MBA graduates must evaluate the relative strengths and weaknesses of an organization’s sustainability goals and strategy.
Be prepared: research allows the candidate to investigate beyond what is in the public domain
With a growing interest in purpose-driven work, MBA graduates are increasingly questioning potential employers rather than simply answering their questions.
We offer suggestions on what they should consider regarding a company’s sustainability policies.
Why should MBAs care about sustainability in future employment?
Long-term job satisfaction and security
Academic research shows that when companies prioritize sustainability, they can better adapt to changes in the business environment, ensuring their long-term financial performance and providing greater job security.
Commitment to sustainability shows your dedication to lasting resilience, increasing employees’ confidence in their future.
A greater focus on employee well-being leads to greater job satisfaction, lower burnout, and a more harmonious workplace. When employees feel valued and supported, they become more engaged, productive, and invested in the success of an organization.
Shared values
For those who value sustainability, aligning with organizations committed to making a positive impact on the environment and society enhances the meaning they derive from work.
When considering a new job, most workers take into account the potential employer’s values.
With the growing commitment to sustainability, those who align with their employers are much more likely to be exposed to new opportunities within a company, and employers will benefit from a workforce with shared values and aspirations.
Professional development and career options
Sustainability presents an opportunity for graduates to create new career paths and strengthen professional development.
It requires contributions from all functional roles as regulations and disclosure evolve, and as opportunities for innovation and new business models emerge.
Graduates possess skills that enable them to foster collaboration, break down silos, drive change and skillfully manage business risks. By leveraging their expertise, MBAs can play a critical role in driving sustainable practices and positioning themselves at the forefront of this era.
How to become more informed about sustainability credentials
Every good interview begins with preparation. Investigate the organization’s progress reported in the public domain. This allows interview time to be used more effectively to ask bolder, probing questions that go beyond what is publicly available.
Explore an organization’s relative strengths and weaknesses in its sustainability strategy, objectives and goals, commitments and measured progress. For example, the Embedding Project has a sustainability goals database that reviews 15,000 goals across more than 1,300 companies and criteria for evaluating commitments. The Carbon Disclosure Project runs a global environmental impact disclosure system.
What questions should MBAs ask their future employers?
Incorporating sustainability into an organization’s business model works best when done comprehensively across all of its operations.
Based on the conviction that sustainability can and should be present within all business functions and transversally, the following questions can be used as starting points to examine its extension and scope.
Strategy and decision making.
What are the company’s long-term strategic sustainability goals and how are they established, communicated, cascaded and measured across functions?
Is sustainability integrated into decision making at all levels of the organization and, if so, how does this happen in practice?
Operations and value chain
How do you consider, evaluate and prioritize sustainability impacts across the value chain? Do you use environmentally or socially focused life cycle assessments or other formal tools?
Can you share specific instances or collaborations where your organization has taken steps to foster sustainability across the value chain, partnering with suppliers, competitors, associations, nonprofits, or customers?
Payment and people
How is compensation structured to incentivize senior management and employees to promote sustainability goals?
What forms of education and training are available to promote employee learning and development, awareness of responsible consumption, and knowledge sharing to foster systemic change?
Innovation and technology
How have long-term sustainability strategies led to new business models and revenue streams?
Could you give examples of new products or services that directly support the sustainability goals of the organization or its partners or customers?
Finance and accounting
Does the company develop, use or access sustainability-related financing, such as green, blue or social bonds, sustainability-linked loans or government subsidies, and how are they used?
How is the finance function incorporating sustainability-driven non-financial data and metrics into forecasting and reporting?
How does this lead to new or different decisions or actions?
Marketing and Communication
How does marketing drive consumer awareness and action around the organization’s sustainability strategy, products and services, and how does this contribute to the evolution of its core offerings?
Governance
What board-level decision-making structures and processes support and challenge sustainability strategy and actions?
For organizations that have worked within voluntary frameworks, such as the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi), the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), or in partnerships with relevant industry associations or non-profit organizations, how do Have they advanced specific initiatives? Where do you see more news?
An interviewer may not know the answers to all of these questions, but asking them will prompt leaders within the organization to reflect on the scope and ambition of their sustainability integration.
Only by recognizing that both MBA graduates and employers must raise the bar can we collectively shape the resilient organizations needed to meet the world’s challenges.
Sustainability Manager Interview Questions to Ask Job Seekers
No more guessing
The following contribution is from the Testlify portal, which is defined as helping startups, SMEs and companies to hire the best talents effectively.
Since 2020, they have been creating an HR technology tool that focuses on better hiring without the hassle of manually sifting through resumes or guessing which is the best candidate to work with.
They say it clearly: our goal is to help organizations hire top talent and double the productivity of every hiring manager.
The role of the sustainability manager has gained significant momentum in recent years as organizations recognize the need to address environmental, social and governance (ESG) concerns.
With the growing awareness of climate change and societal push for sustainability, the hiring trend for sustainability managers has seen a substantial increase.
According to industry reports, there has been a notable 45% increase in demand for Sustainability Managers in the last two years. This increase can be attributed to increasing pressure from stakeholders, customers and regulators for businesses to operate in a more sustainable and responsible manner.
As HR professionals and CXOs (Chief Experience Officers) navigate this evolving landscape, understanding the key competencies and qualifications needed for a sustainability manager becomes primordial.
To assist in the selection process, we have selected a set of interview questions designed to assess candidates’ experience, strategic thinking, and ability to drive sustainable initiatives within an organization.
Here are many of the top Sustainability Manager interview questions to ask job applicants:
