Chief Sustainability Officers

What the job really is

Communicate and coordinate with management, shareholders, customers, and employees to address sustainability issues. Enact or oversee a corporate sustainability strategy.

At a glance

• Sector: Management
• O*NET-SOC code: 11-1011
• O*NET job zone: 5 — extensive preparation
• Work sample tasks on file: 12
• Tools and technologies listed: 12

What you actually do

Work sample tasks recorded for this occupation:

• Monitor and evaluate effectiveness of sustainability programs.
• Develop or execute strategies to address issues such as energy use, resource conservation, recycling, pollution reduction, waste elimination, transportation, education, and building design.
• Develop, or oversee the development of, sustainability evaluation or monitoring systems.
• Supervise employees or volunteers working on sustainability projects.
• Develop sustainability reports, presentations, or proposals for supplier, employee, academia, media, government, public interest, or other groups.
• Develop, or oversee the development of, marketing or outreach media for sustainability projects or events.
• Identify and evaluate pilot projects or programs to enhance the sustainability research agenda.
• Create and maintain sustainability program documents, such as schedules and budgets.
• Formulate or implement sustainability campaign or marketing strategies.
• Research environmental sustainability issues, concerns, or stakeholder interests.
• Direct sustainability program operations to ensure compliance with environmental or governmental regulations.
• Evaluate and approve proposals for sustainability projects, considering factors such as cost effectiveness, technical feasibility, and integration with other initiatives.

Tools and technology

Adobe Acrobat, Adobe Photoshop, Facebook, Microsoft Access, Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Office software, Microsoft Outlook, Microsoft PowerPoint, Microsoft Project, Microsoft SharePoint, Microsoft Word, SAP software

What employers expect you to already be comfortable with.

Where this job leads

Related occupations — the usual moves up and sideways:

• Sustainability Specialists
• Climate Change Policy Analysts
• Industrial Ecologists
• Wind Energy Development Managers
• Environmental Scientists and Specialists, Including Health
• Urban and Regional Planners
• Brownfield Redevelopment Specialists and Site Managers
• Environmental Restoration Planners

Getting in

O*NET assigns this occupation job zone 5 (extensive preparation). The related occupations above are the realistic routes in and out.

Find openings

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Check this against the source

O*NET OnLine: Chief Sustainability Officers — the authoritative public-domain profile this page is derived from, including the full task list, reported skills and the wage estimates for your region.

Derived and rewritten from the public-domain O*NET database (U.S. Department of Labor / Employment and Training Administration). Figures are observations, not promises — always confirm salary, licensing and visa requirements with the employer and the relevant authority.