Insights on New Zealand Sustainability Professionals2020 Report

2

ForewordOver the last twenty years, sustainability has moved from being a grass roots movement in New Zealand organisations to executives and directors now increasingly having a fiscal responsibility for it. Sustainability is becoming embedded into their strategies and business practices and this has seen the rise of dedicated sustainability roles. Organisations are seeking to understand where these roles should sit in their business, their remit and support requirements. Students are seeking out these purposeful roles and learning institutes are increasingly integrating sustainability into academic pathways.

Oxygen Consulting in collaboration with the Auckland University of Technology (AUT), Sustainable Business Council (SBC), and Sustainable Business Network (SBN), provide an in depth look at the role of the New Zealand sustainability professional in this report.

It follows the research that was undertaken during February – March 2020, which surveyed 130 New Zealand sustainability professionals. The research was conducted in accordance with AUT’s Ethics Committee processes (AUTEC Reference number 20/35).

‘Sustainability’ includes responsibilities that address the social, environmental and economic risks to the organisation. Participants included those in full time, part time or contractual positions within public, private and not for profit sectors.

The purpose of this report is to help grow the sustainability profession. It removes the mystery of these roles so that they can become more accessible to individuals, and gives organisations a basis and structure for establishing and supporting them. It identifies the capabilities and technical expertise necessary in sustainability positions, to assist in guiding academic pathways towards careers in sustainability. It also provides insight to the key challenges faced in these roles and enablers for success.

We welcome your feedback and the opportunity to support your sustainability journey through this research.

Dr. Sarah Holden, Director Oxygen Consulting

Who are our sustainability professionals?

“ The world will experience unprecedented change in the next 30 years. Our approach to sustainability now is only the start of the journey… it is not job done, it is job started.

4

Sustainability professionals are employed across a broad range of sectors, mostly by larger businesses with a strong Auckland and Wellington presence

Sectors employingsustainability professionals

22%15%10%8%7%7%6%5%5%4%4%4%1%1%1%1%

Professional, Scientific, Technical, Administrative and Support ServicesOtherElectricity, Gas, Water and Waste ServicesPublic Administration and SafetyEducation and TrainingFinancial and Insurance ServicesManufacturingAgriculture, Farming and FishingTransport, Postal and WarehousingConstructionHealth Care and Social AssistanceInformation Media and TelecommunicationsArts, Recreation and Other ServicesMiningRental, Hiring and Real Estate ServicesRetail Trade and Accommodation

Location ofsustainability professionals

Size of organisation wheresustainability professional works

64%18%7%5%2%2%1%1%1%

AucklandWellingtonCanterburyBay of PlentyWaikatoMarlboroughNorthlandOtagoTaranaki

41%22%13%11%8%6%

1000+ employees250-1000 employees1-9 employees50-249 employees10-19 employees20-49 employees

5

76% of sustainability professionals are in New Zealand owned organisations. Most organisations have been on their sustainability journey for at least four years

Organisational ownership structures

Length of time organisationhas had a sustainability focus

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Not sure Fully owned or controlled by an o�shore parent

company or investor

Partially owned or controlled by

an o�shore parent company

or investor

NZ Govt owned / State owned

enterprise / Local Authority

NZ owned but with o�shore operations

NZ owned and operated

Num

ber o

f org

anis

atio

ns

33%22%20%10%9%6%

10+ years1-3 years4-6 years7-9 yearsLess than 1 yearNot sure

6

Females aged between 26-45 dominate the sustainability profession and most identify with New Zealand ethnicities

Ethnicity split ofsustainability professionals

Gender split ofsustainability professionals

Age split ofsustainability professionals

61%37%1%1%

FemaleMaleNon-binaryPrefer not to disclose

30%27%26%10%5%2%

36-4526-3546-5518-2556-65Prefer not to disclose

25%21%16%15%8%3%3%2%1%1%1%1%3%

New Zealand EuropeanPākehāNew ZealanderEuropeanMixed ethnicityMāoriUKIndianChineseAsianAustralianSouth AfricanUndisclosed

95% of sustainability professionals hold a tertiary degree, with many having focused on science or business

“ I think people get the idea that learning sustainability is easy, but in reality, you need tertiary qualifications for this field.

“ Sustainability requires a variety of skills... I do not think there is one tertiary qualification out there that fully encompasses what is required of the role.

Sustainability professionals’tertiary qualification spread

37%15%7%7%6%5%5%4%3%3%3%3%3%

Bachelor of ScienceBachelor of CommerceBachelor of ArtsOtherNo Tertiary DegreeMaster of ScienceBachelor of EngineeringBachelor of Applied Management/Business ManagementMaster of Business AdministrationDiplomaBachelor of CommunicationsBachelor of LawBachelor of Design

8

Sustainability professionals bring diverse skills and experiences to the profession, having held a wide range of vocations prior to their role in sustainability

SUSTAINABILITY

ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCEEN

VIRO

NMEN

TAL

MAN

AGEM

ENT

COMMUNICATIONS/CORPORATE AFFAIRS

ACADEMIC

FINA

NCE

OTHER SCIENCE

IT

RETAIL/SALES

BUSINESS OWNER/DIRECTOR

ENGI

NEER

ING

TOURISMLE

GAL

DESI

GN

TECHNOLOGY

BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

ARCH

ITEC

TURE

ENERGY MANAGEMENTRISK MANAGEMENT

MANUFACTURING

MARKETING

SUPPLY CHAIN/PROCUREMENT

HEALTH AND SAFETY

CONS

TRUC

TION

PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION/GOVERNMENT

EDUCATION/TRAINING

MED

IA

BUILDING SCIENCE CONS

ERVA

TION

HEAL

THCA

RE

RESOURCING MANAGEMENT/PLANNING

BUSINESS MANAGEMENT

STUD

ENT

Word sizing relates to how frequently vocation was identified

What are the role competencies and responsibilities?

“ The key to this role is the ability to inspire and influence others and to be an effective ‘multi-solver’. Our best approach is to convene, facilitate and enable others to act. We must be a catalyst for change.

10

Communication skills, building partnerships, strategic skills, problem solving and leadership skills are the top five competencies for sustainability professionals now and into the future

Communication skills are the most important competency now, while building partnerships will become more necessary in the future

“ Practical skills are required, rather than just theoretical idealism, to allow sustainability to be realised.

Perceived importance of competenciesrequired in the role now compared to the future

Aver

age

rank

resp

onse

(1 =

low

, 5 =

hig

h)

0

1

2

3

4

5

Prob

lem

sol

ving

Rese

arch

ski

lls

Proj

ect m

anag

emen

t

Tech

nica

l kno

wle

dge

Anal

ytic

s /

Dat

a m

anag

emen

t cap

abili

ties

Repo

rting

ski

lls

Build

ing

partn

ersh

ips

Peop

le M

anag

emen

t ski

lls

Stra

tegi

c sk

ills

Lead

ersh

ip s

kills

NowFuture

Com

mun

icat

ion

skill

s

11

Senior and middle management roles take on the bulk of sustainability responsibilities, particularly in managing governance and strategy development

Junior includes: Graduates, Junior Consultants, Consultant, and Advisor roles Middle includes: Managers and Senior Manager roles Senior includes: General Manager, Head of Department, Executive, and Managing Director roles Ranking based on the priority of the activity within the role, where 1 = low priority, 5= high priority. This chart shows the percentage of people that ranked the activity 4/5 or 5/5.

Split of sustainability responsibilities between role types

0

20

40

60

80

100

Reporting progress to external

stakeholders

Reporting progress to internal

stakeholders

Measuring or analysing the social

environmental or financial impact of

sustainability initiatives

Managing the delivery of

sustainability initiatives

Managing organisational sustainability certification programmes

Managing internal sustainability governance

Stakeholder engagement

Assessing material sustainability risks and opportunities

Perc

enta

ge o

f res

pons

es ra

nked

4/5

or 5

/5

Junior Middle Senior

Sustainability Strategy/plan development

12

Time spent influencing versusimplementing sustainability initiatives

Expertise provided by externalconsultants for organisations

Num

ber o

f top

prio

rity

rank

ings

Num

ber o

f res

pons

es

Implementing Influencing0

10

20

30

40

50

0

5

10

15

20

Life

-cyc

le

Lead

ersh

ip

Risk

Ener

gy M

anag

emen

t

Stra

tegy

Rese

arch

Repo

rting

Mat

eria

lity

Assu

ranc

e/Ve

rifica

tion/

Cer

tifica

tion

Tech

nica

l Adv

ice

Emis

sion

s

Audi

ting

Sustainability professionals spend most of their time influencing uptake of sustainability within their organisations, with technical support from external consultants

Implementing/Influencing were on a scale of 1-5. Top priority ranking corresponds to a 5/5 ranked response.

65% of practitioners reported their organisation using external consultants for their sustainability practices

13

Peer-to-peer learning is a key way sustainability professionals develop capability in their roles

Key methods for role capability development

Num

ber o

f peo

ple

usin

g th

is m

etho

d

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

Networking opportunities / peer to peer

ReadingSpeakers / workshops / conferences

Courses provided by SBC / SBN / University / Online

How are organisations structuring sustainability into their business?

“ It is critical that the CEO and senior management buy into this agenda. Once sustainability is embedded in the strategic planning process and senior leadership have a personal commitment to sustainability, everyone else gets on board.

15

Organisations are using sustainability to transform their business and are boosting their sustainability resourcing to do so

‘Resourcing’ is defined as ‘budget, staff and investment in solutions’.

71% of participants saw an increase in sustainability resourcing in their organisation in the last twelve months,

Motivations for organisational sustainability Sustainability resourcing changes in last 12 months

Num

ber o

f res

pons

es

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

E�ciency / Cost savings

Compliance Competitive advantage

Businesstransformation

67%22%6%5%

It has increasedIt has remained the sameNot sureIt has decreased

16

Climate change is the highest sustainability priority for most organisations now...

Sustainability topics were on a scale of 1-5. Top priority ranking corresponds to a 5/5 ranked response

Sustainability topics within organisations ranked top priority by practitioners

Num

ber o

f top

prio

rity

rank

ings

Sust

aina

ble

labo

ur p

ract

ices

Sust

aina

ble

finan

ce o

r inv

estm

ent

Addr

essi

ng h

uman

righ

ts

Addr

essi

ng in

equa

lity

and

pove

rty

Dig

ital a

nd te

chno

logy

inno

vatio

n

Sust

aina

ble

pack

agin

g

Inte

grat

ing

the

Sust

aina

ble

Dev

elop

men

t Goa

ls

Wat

er e

�ci

ency

Sust

aina

bilit

y co

mpl

ianc

e e.

g. IS

O14

001

Prod

uct s

tew

ards

hip

Soci

al li

cens

e to

ope

rate

Sust

aina

ble

supp

ly c

hain

Sust

aina

ble

proc

urem

ent

Com

mun

ity in

vest

men

t / e

ngag

emen

t pro

gram

mes

Sust

aina

ble

trans

port

Sust

aina

ble

prod

ucts

and

ser

vice

inno

vatio

n

Ener

gy e

�ci

ency

Sust

aina

ble

polic

ies,

cod

es a

nd g

over

nanc

e

Inte

rnal

eng

agem

ent o

n su

stai

nabi

lity

Div

ersi

ty a

nd in

clus

ion

Was

te m

anag

emen

t

Hea

lth, s

afet

y an

d w

ellb

eing

Und

erst

andi

ng a

nd m

anag

ing

clim

ate

chan

ge

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

17

...and into the future

Climate change compiles four categories of climate change related issues. These included keywords relating to climate change leadership, climate change adaptation/mitigation/resilience, solutions/ innovation for climate change and simply ‘climate change’.

“ Humankind urgently needs to find ways of supporting 7.5+ billion people to live within ecological limits. This will require profound change to our economy and society - sustainability is at the heart of this. The clearest driver is the need to address climate change, which will require shifts in many areas, such as technology, policy and finance.

Future growth areas for sustainability identified by participants

Num

ber o

f ass

ocia

ted

keyw

ords

in re

spon

ses

Life

Cyc

le A

sses

smen

t

Dec

arbo

nisa

tion

Cul

tura

l & B

ehav

ior C

hang

e

Risk

Man

agem

ent

Educ

atio

n

Supp

ly C

hain

s / P

rocu

rem

ent

Gre

en &

Circ

ular

Eco

nom

ies

/ Fin

ance

Soci

al S

usta

inab

ility

and

Impa

ct

Clim

ate

Cha

nge

0

20

40

60

80

100

18

Organisations typically have at least 1 - 2 sustainability roles that can report into a wide variety of business units, usually placed within three positions from the CEO

Num

ber o

f res

pond

ents

Num

ber o

f res

pond

ents

Number of sustainability roles per organisation Number of positions removed from the CEO

Location of sustainability roles within the organisation

32%19%18%14%12%4%2%

1-2 FTELess than 1 FTEMore than 8 FTE3-4 FTE5-6 FTE7-8 FTENot sure

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

Gov

ernm

ent /

Leg

al/ R

egul

ator

y

Adm

inis

tratio

n

Advi

sory

CEO

Com

mer

cial

Com

mun

icat

ions

Com

mun

ity

Com

plia

nce

Con

sulti

ng

Cor

pora

te R

espo

nsib

ility

Cor

pora

te S

ervi

ces

Cor

pora

te /

Exte

rnal

/A�a

irs

Cus

tom

er /

Sale

s

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

Envi

ronm

ent

Exec

utiv

e

Faci

litie

s

Fina

nce

Hea

lth &

Saf

ety

HR

/ Peo

ple

Infra

stru

ctur

e

Inno

vatio

n

Mar

ketin

g

Ope

ratio

ns

Plan

ning

Plan

ning

Prod

uctio

n

Prop

erty

Stra

tegy

Sust

aina

bilit

y

Tech

nica

l

19

Most sustainability professionals are in full time roles, but nearly half of them are juggling other responsibilities within the organisation

Individual role capacitywithin the organisation

Amount of role focusedon sustainability

Other responsibilities held by sustainabilityprofessionals within their organisation

82%15%3%

Full timePart timeContractor

16%

9%

9%

8%

58%

100% focus1-24% focus25-49% focus50-74% focus75-99% focus

MARKETINGSALES

SOCI

AL M

EDIA

QUALITY IMPROVEMENTINFRASTRUCTURE

ADMIN

OPERATIONS

BUSI

NESS

DEV

ELOP

MEN

TCU

STOM

ER S

ERVI

CE

TREA

SURY

PARTNERSHIPSENGINEERING

PROC

UREM

ENT

PROJ

ECT

MAN

AGEM

ENT

SPON

SORS

HIPS

FACILITIES MANAGEMENT

PAYR

OLL

COM

PLIA

NCE

HR

HEALTH AND SAFETY

COM

MUN

ICAT

IONS

CORP

ORAT

E GO

VERN

ANCE

20

Organisations are remunerating sustainability professionals in line with their seniority, enabling opportunities for financial progression through the profession

From graduate to GM/executive, sustainability salaries range from <$50,000 to >$300,000

Graphs indicate the average total remuneration across each of the role segments

Average total remuneration of sustainability professionals

0

50

100

150

200

250

Aver

age

rem

uner

atio

n (N

ZD, 0

00)

$54,750$69,500

$89,829$109,500

$141,375$152,273

$206,250

Management Level

Graduate Junior Consultant / Advisor

Consultant / Advisor

Manager Senior Manager Head of Department

General Manager / Executive

How well are organisations supporting sustainability professionals?

“ I love working in sustainability and will not shift away from it now that I am here. The hardest part is working in an area that I am passionate about but lacking the resource to deliver effectively and to the best of my ability.

22

Most sustainability professionals are in mid-career roles, however there are no clear pathways into other organisational roles, despite sustainability professionals having cross-functional capabilities

“ Sustainability is still pretty siloed…and you can get pigeon-holed as the ‘sustainability person’, people don’t necessarily recognise what else you might be good at.

Distribution of sustainabilityprofessional roles

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

Num

ber o

f pos

ition

s

Management level

Juni

or C

onsu

ltant

/ Ad

viso

r

Gra

duat

e

Gen

eral

Man

ager

/ Ex

ec

Man

agin

g D

irect

or /

Dire

ctor

Hea

d of

Dep

artm

ent

Man

ager

Seni

or M

anag

er

Con

sulta

nt /

Advi

sor

Is there a clear promotion pathway fromsustainability into another role in your organisation?

83%21%8%8%

NoNot sureNot applicableYes

Competencies required by sustainability professionals (1 = low priority, 5 = high priority)

Analytics / Data management capabilities

Research skills

Technical knowledge

Reporting skills

Project management

Problem solving

Building partnerships

Communication skills

0 1 2 3 4 5

23

Most sustainability professionals feel empowered and supported in their roles and connected to other teams within their organisation

“ We are fairly well connected due to the relationships we have built, but there are still silos to be broken down.

“ I have a junior position but am encouraged to suggest initiatives and they are taken seriously, because it is a unique role but also an important organisational agenda.

Participant rating levels 1-10 scale, groupings for descriptors: ‘not very’ = 1-4; ‘reasonably’ = 5-7; ‘highly’ = 8-10

Role empowerment

Role support

Team connection

0102030405060

Perc

enta

ge p

eopl

ePe

rcen

tage

peo

ple

Perc

enta

ge p

eopl

e

Not very empowered Reasonably empowered Highly empowered

Not very supported Reasonably supported Highly supported

Not very connected Reasonably connected Highly connected

Average empowerment = 72%

Average support = 67%

Average connectedness = 66%

01020304050

01020304050

24

However, organisations may be under-resourcing their sustainability agendas, leading to higher levels of job stress amongst sustainability professionals

‘Resourcing’ is defined as ‘budget, staff and investment in solutions’ Participant rating levels 1-10 scale, groupings for descriptors: ‘not very’ = 1-4; ‘reasonably’ = 5-7; ‘highly’ = 8-10.

Job stress measured on a scale of 1-10 (no stress – extreme stress) and compares Sustainability professionals (n=130) with a sample of New Zealand professionals from all other sectors (n=442)

“ Sustainability is hugely important for our business and while we have the people power, we don’t have the budget to deliver the ambitious strategy and work programme the organization has on this front, which can be frustrating.

Level of sustainability resourcing

0

10

20

30

40

50

70

60

Perc

enta

ge o

f res

pond

ents

Perc

enta

ge s

tress

leve

l

Not very resourced Reasonably resourced Highly resourced

Average resourcing= 54%

Job stress - Sustainability professionals vs NZ Professionals

0

10

20

30

40

50

70

60

Sustainability professionals New Zealand professionals

25

Work demands - Sustainability professionals vs NZ professionals

Job satisfaction - Sustainability professionals vs NZ professionals

3.3

3.5

3.7

4.1

3.9

Sustainability professionals New Zealand professionals

2.4

2.6

3.0

2.8

3.4

3.2

Sustainability professionals New Zealand professionals

Work demands are significantly greater for sustainability professionals, yet their overall job satisfaction is much higher than other New Zealand professionals

Work demands reflects participants aggregated average rating of three questions on a 1-5 scale (1 = strongly disagree, 5 = strongly agree): (A) I often feel that I am being run ragged from work; (B) I am given too much work to do; (C) I can’t complete my work in a normal work-day

Job satisfaction reflects participants aggregated average rating of three questions on a 1-5 scale (1 = strongly disagree, 5 = strongly agree): (A) Most days I am enthusiastic about my work; (B) I feel fairly satisfied with my present job; (C) I find real enjoyment in my work

Results compare this survey sample of sustainability professionals (n=130) with a sample of New Zealand professionals from all other sectors (n=442)

“ Most of us experience stress because we find it difficult to stop. This is the result of a profoundly felt responsibility for sustainability and recognition of the potential impact we can have.

AcknowledgementsThe following people provided valuable contribution to the development, design and execution of this research and insights report:

CONCEPT AND LEAD SPONSOR

Dr. Sarah Holden - Director, Oxygen Consulting Magnus Williams - Research & Analytics Consultant, Oxygen Consulting

CONTRIBUTING PARTNERS AND REVIEWERS

Professor Marjo Lips-Wiersma – Director Ethics and Sustainability, Auckland University of Technology Dr. Peter McGhee – Senior Lecturer, Auckland University of Technology Auckland University of Technology Ethics Committee (AUTEC) Jay Crangle – Manager Strategy, Sustainable Business Council Alison Herft – (Former) Manager, Members & Consumer Programme, Sustainable Business Council Robert Perry – Manager Sustainable Leadership, Sustainable Business Council Catriona Robertson – Communications Manager, Sustainable Business Council Rachel Brown ONZM – Chief Executive Officer, Sustainable Business Network Fiona Stephenson – National Communications Manager, Sustainable Business Network Xan Hamilton – Events Manager, Sustainable Business Network

DESIGN AGENCY

Kieren Smith – Director, Incognito Design

27

Contributing organisations

OXYGEN CONSULTINGOxygen Consulting provides organisations with technical advice and guidance on sustainability practices, assisting clients to maximise their long-term business performance by strengthening social, environmental and economic outcomes.

Its services support all aspects of the organisational sustainability journey, including: assessing material risks and opportunities; developing a sustainability strategy and key performance metrics; building sustainability capability and capacity; project management and impact measurement; research and insights, and; reporting and communicating progress.

Oxygen Consulting is a member of the Sustainable Business Council, the Sustainable Business Network, and the Climate Leaders Coalition.

Contact: Sarah Holden – Director: sarah@oxygen-consulting.co.nz, 027 620 4406

Web: www.oxygen-consulting.co.nz

AUCKLAND UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY (AUT) SUSTAINABILITY RESEARCH The sustainability team at AUT researches at the intersection of engagement, resilience and sustainability action and regularly works with business and NGO’s to promote employee engagement in sustainability. Its student research also gives it a strong voice to youth engagement in sustainability. AUT scored high in the Times Social Impact awards and sustainability teaching is integrated throughout all degrees in the Business School. At present the AUT Business School runs 7 sustainability courses at both undergraduate and post-graduate level.

Contact: Marjo Lips-Wiersma – Professor of Ethics and Sustainability Leadership: marjo.lipswiersma@aut.ac.nz; 022 409 3809

Web: www.aut.ac.nz

SUSTAINABLE BUSINESS COUNCIL (SBC)SBC is a membership organisation, with a long-term aim to make sustainability mainstream within New Zealand businesses. They do this by inspiring businesses by creating a community of positive change, supporting members to go further and celebrating their leadership and success. SBC is part of the BusinessNZ network and is the New Zealand Global Network partner to the World Business Council for Sustainable Development. Membership now comprises more than 100 companies representing over 30% of GDP.

SBC’s Current projects include: Sustainable leadership, climate action, consumer decision-making and the future of work. It is also the backbone organisation for the Climate Leaders Coalition.

Contact: Catriona Robertson - Manager Communications: crobertson@businessnz.org.nz, 021 242 7936

Web: www.sbc.org.nz

SUSTAINABLE BUSINESS NETWORK (SBN)The Sustainable Business Network (SBN) is the largest sustainable business organisation in New Zealand, with more than 600 members ranging from corporates to small businesses and social enterprises. Its purpose is to empower business so people and nature prosper. Our team of sustainability experts provides practical advice, tools and training, and collaborates on system change projects. We focus on the urgent issues of the circular economy, climate and water.

Contact: Fiona Stephenson - National Communications Manager: Fiona@sustainable.org.nz, 021 233 1053

Web: www.sustainable.org.nz