Today, there is a significant shortage of individuals with expertise in sustainability. In the UK, for example, just one in eight professionals in the UK possess essential skills such as climate action planning or sustainable design, leaving a skills gap of around 200,000 workers. On a global scale, this becomes an even larger problem, particularly as businesses are looking to enhance their climate-focused capabilities.

For this reason, demand is soaring for corporate training and development programmes centred around sustainability in leadership. Often in a company, change starts from within, and by equipping its staff with the tools and skills needed to implement positive change, a company can quickly and efficiently make a difference in their environmental impact.

To answer the call it falls to business schools, the institutions responsible for training senior leaders for the challenges ahead, to design and launch courses that focus on providing much-needed sustainability training. With a number of leading schools channelling significant amounts of their expertise into helping to tackle the global climate crisis, many are now also turning their discoveries into practical, impactful education programmes.

Here are just a few examples of recently launched Executive Education programmes that are helping to equip senior leaders with the vital skillsets needed for fighting climate change and creating positive change;

King’s Business School: ESG for Hospitality Leaders

The hospitality sector’s Energy and Environmental Alliance (EEA) has partnered with King’s Business School to launch an executive education programme for hospitality leaders to help them embed ESG measures in their businesses. Developed through a discussion with more than 40 senior hospitality leaders, the ESG for Hospitality Leaders programme hopes to accelerate progress on environmental measures ahead of the commitment made by over 100 countries to reach net zero CO2 emissions by 2050.

Imperial College Business School: Executing Sustainability Strategies

“Sustainability is no longer an option; it is a requirement for every organisation on the planet to develop and execute sustainability strategies,” writes Imperial College Business School. It is just another example of a business school that has recently launched a new executive education programme in sustainability. Designed for senior leaders, Imperial’s Executing Sustainability Strategies programme helps individuals refine and implement their sustainability strategy-with continuous, follow-through support and guidance from the Imperial College ecosystem of world experts in sustainability and leadership.

Warwick Business School: Leading Sustainability Transitions

Warwick Business School has launched an online course, Leading Sustainability Transitions, with the aim of helping businesses and organisations become more sustainable. While the course covers the familiar environmental concerns, it also focuses on how social issues are integral to necessary and innovative business decisions, explains the course director, Fred Dahlmann. “In practice, this can impact many crucial activities, for example, the role of the UN SDGs and the importance of sustainable supply chains, managing diversity, and developing purpose-led businesses,” he said.

BI Norwegian Business School: Executive Master of Management in Energy

BI Norwegian Business School’s Executive Master of Management in Energy explores the development in Europe and Scandinavia during the last decade as pioneers for new business models and energy market designs. A collaboration with IFP School in Paris, this executive master’s combines Norway’s expertise in governance and technology development within the oil, natural gas and electricity sectors, with France’s leading energy technology knowledge. Throughout the programme, participants will develop the qualifications needed to lead the ‘industrial revolution’, and prepare for sustainable management positions in the energy industry of tomorrow.

Frankfurt School of Finance and Management: Various courses based on sustainability

Frankfurt School offers various Executive Education courses and certificate programmes focused on sustainability through the FS Sustainable World Academy (SWA), with each one dedicated to the advancement of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). These executive education courses offer hands-on skills on how to finance and manage a better future.

Cambridge Judge Business School: ESG Leadership Skills for Transition to Sustainable Business

The recently launched ESG Leadership Skills for Transition to Sustainable Business helps people adapt and transform their current practices in anticipation of a more environmentally sustainable future. Individuals will develop an action plan adapted to the needs and restraints of their own organisation, while deepening their understanding of the organisational change and personal leadership skills needed to drive their organisation’s green transition. This is a programme for those who want to take action in their organisation.

NYU Stern School of Business: Corporate Sustainability – Driving Competitive Advantage and Better Performance

NYU Stern School of Business has launched an exec-ed course in corporate sustainability to teach participants how to identify and tackle material ESG issues, understand how to develop business strategies related to climate change and receive insights into ground-breaking research on consumer purchasing of sustainable products. Intended executives with more than five years of work experience, participants will develop the skills and tools needed to design and implement sustainable practices in their organisation and improve their own career development.

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