CSO BACK STORY - Weinreb Group

Foreword ByEllen WeinrebCEO, Weinreb GroupThe person in charge of corporatesustainability and corporate socialresponsibility has evoloved, from alargely director level position, to vicepresident to chief, over the last decade.As the sustainability function creptup the corporate ladder, so has thecaliber of the person leading it. Thuswe have the title “Chief SustainabilityOfficer,” which implies the senior-mostsustainability leader in the senior-mostpossible position.Two years ago, the New York Timescalled this emerging role a “swellingof the C-suite 1 .” But nothing out theredefines or questions the role’s scope.As an executive recruiter 2 who haswatched and worked in the sustainabilityfield now for 15 years, I have seenfirsthand the evolution of this professionfrom a discretionary cost to a strategicnecessity. However, little attention hasbeen paid to this title – no data, nodefinition, no best practices.In 2010 I wrote an editorial for GreenBiz,where I questioned the definition andthis varying use of the term “ChiefSustainability Officer 3 .” I even made aan early attempt at the definition, whichjust scratched the surface. It was thenthat the idea for CSO Back Story wasborn.I felt that companies struggle with whatto call it, where to put it, and who tolead it would appreciate some real data.Even a list of CSO’s does not exist todate. It was my intention in CSO BackStory to conduct exhaustive research togenerate 1) a CSO list, and 2) a study ofhow they arrived to their role today.To structure the research, I createdspecific criteria. I decided to focus onU.S.-based individuals who had “ChiefSustainability Officer” in their title at acompany traded publicly in the UnitedStates.My team and I found 29 4 .While the criteria for the researchrequired the title “Chief SustainabilityOfficer,” there are many sustainabilityleaders who hold other titles. Becausetitles remain diverse across industries,this report develops best practices forthose in the senior-most role regardlessof their official title.My research uncovered several startlingfacts and identified a roster of bestpractices that the profession sorelyrequires.In the next few pages, you will seethe first-ever data driven report of itskind analyzing and encapsulating theessence of a crucial and emergingexecutive role: the Chief SustainabilityOfficer. You will understand this role in itsentire complexity and scope, learn fromexamples, see firsthand the evolutionof these chiefs, and gain valuableperspectives into how organizationsdefine and implement sustainability.We owe many thanks to the people whosupported the methodology, research,content, editing and reviewing of CSOBack Story.1Companies Giving Green an Officer http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/03/business/03sustain.html?pagewanted=22The Weinreb Group http://weinrebgroup.com/3In search of the elusive CSO: http://www.GreenBiz.com/blog/2010/04/01/search-elusive-chief-sustainability-officer4We included Georgia Pacific even though it is not publicly traded. We felt compelled to include GP because of its sheer size and the fact that it had been public until 2005, when it was acquired by KochIndustries for $21 Billion.CSO Back StoryWeinreb Group