What does a CSO actually do?

CSOs – or Chief Sustainability Officers - are one of the most talked about roles in the impact sector right now.

But what do they actually do?

Even for the aspiring CSOs among you, it can sometimes be tricky to pin down what a typical day-to-day looks like for this relatively new leadership role. 

It can be scary to navigate how to climb the ladder to get promoted into this coveted senior sustainability C-suite role. 

And once you get there you may suffer from imposter syndrome. "How did I get here? Have I earned this? Do I know all of the answers?"

Well, that is why we started hosting our monthly "day in the life" series Coffee & Connect to hear first hand from senior leaders.

Also thankfully Harvard Business Review has done some digging and broken down the core responsibilities of a CSO into eight different categories:

1. Ensuring regulatory compliance
2. Overseeing all ESG monitoring and reporting
3. Mapping out a portfolio of relevant sustainability projects
4. Promoting an ongoing and constructive dialogue on the issues with both internal and external stakeholders
5. Building on organizational capabilities to ensure the availability of ‘green skills’
6. Communicating the purpose behind business transformation and bringing everyone in an organization on the journey
7. Scouting and experimenting for relevant innovation to draw from in the ESG ecosystem
8. Embedding sustainability into all processes and decision-making at an organization

I have just started to dive into a new book titled, Chief Sustainability Officers at Work by Chrissa Pagitsas and featuring a few of my cronies - Kevin Hagan , Cynthia Curtis , Kara H. Hurst , Bea Perez , just to name a few.

If you’ve set your sights on becoming a CSO one day then save this email and come back to it regularly to make sure you’re developing, and celebrating, these skills required for the job.

Keep up the good work,

Shannon

Want to find out how you can be the next CSO? Click here!

P.S. Here is some further reading in case you're interested:

• The Ultimate Guide to Becoming a Chief Sustainability Officer (CSO)
• What can impact job seekers learn from the evolution of the CSO?