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So you’re looking to become a sustainability & ESG consultant?
To help you on your journey, we’ve put together an action plan to transition yourself into the field.
The action plan covers 6 steps:
This is a blog series based off our sustainability consultant courses. To reserve your spot for the next release, sign up here
Sustainability and ESG is broad and complex.
It can cover everything from carbon foot-printing, materiality assessments, pay gap analysis, biodiversity, stakeholder engagement to product circularity, the list goes on...
It’s for this reason that sustainability & ESG consultants (tend to) pick a niche in sustainability. More on that later.
Step 1 is all about about understanding breadth, before going into depth.
Use these resources to help you get to grips with the basics.
As with anything, someone won’t buy from you unless they trust you.
One way to do this is by gaining experience from those around you already in the space. E.g. that could be working alongside an existing sustainability team/professional at your current company to learn the tricks of the trade and exposure to the role.
But, if you’re completely new to the field and don't have that option (which is more likely), then gaining an accreditation is a good first step.
Now, accreditations are great, but there are lots to choose from so it can be overhwhelming.
It's worth taking time at this step to see what interests you most (and matches your time and budget).
To help, we’ve compiled a list of popular courses to look at when considering which to pick.
General courses in sustainability:
Specific courses sustainability:
Now that you’ve got your relevant experience, add it to your CV/Resume and move to the next step.
Remember why you originally started this whole thing?
That’s right – to help organisations improve their sustainability (and get paid for it).
That’s why the packaging of your services is such an important part.
By now you’ll have an idea of what area of ESG you want to advise organisations on. If you don’t, use the Ikagi framework to help you decide.
Apply it to sustainability by asking yourself these questions:
Pick your niche and run with it.
Remember you can always change and adapt your niche over time (that’s what makes sustainability such an exciting area to work in).
The more you learn about sustainability the more one realises how data-driven the space is.
That’s why consultants tend to use software. Software helps consultants to manage more clients, offer more services, charge higher prices or gain marketing exposure.
It’s of course impossible to manage clients without software, but it becomes far easier as you scale and need more ESG functionality that Excel doesn't have.
When choosing a software partner, find one that:
To help researching,uUse software review websites like:
... and of course we’d recommend using ourselves here!
You can learn more about how consultants use Futureproof here
Next up – the proposition you’re actually going to sell.
Back to business basics here. Set up a company, build a simple website (e.g. with SquareSpace) and create sales slides. Identify who is your ICP (ideal customer prospect) and why they need the service you're offering.
When you get your first potential customer, ensure you answer each of the following questions to them:
Answer all those questions well and you’ll have your first customer!
Let’s recap, by now you have:
✅ Basic knowledge covered in Sustainability & ESG
✅ A certification/accreditation from an academic institution
✅ A niche in sustainability you’re passionate about working in
✅ A software provider to help you as you grow
✅ A narrative/pitch deck for you to start selling with
Congratulations – you’re on your way to helping more organisations with their sustainability.
Onwards and upwards!
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Learn more about partner programme here
Sign up to the next Sustainability Consultant here
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