In-Person Training
Developed specifically for business, learn how to construct your own sustainability strategy, creating value for your business and engaging customers, employees and investors in return. Learn why a sustainability strategy is critical for long-term success and where and what to focus on for most impact. Armed with the tools, tips and tricks, you’ll be fast tracked for advantage in today’s competitive marketplace.
Who is this for?
- Senior leaders and board members who are considering their first sustainability strategy or are re-examining existing approaches.
- Business strategists, commercial teams and impact officers needing to integrate sustainability into existing business strategy.
- Sustainability professionals new to strategy development.
Learning Outcomes
- An effective understanding of how a sustainability strategy is prepared, what’s required in its development, the key areas of the business examined, the key people involved, materiality and its benefits.
- How a sustainability strategy creates value for the company and how to integrate and communicate it successfully.
- Practical experience with understanding stakeholder groups and the concept of materiality and how this can be applied to your business.
Includes
- Delivery in-person at your facilities
- 8 Modules
- 2 Group exercises
- Time: 1 working day
Pricing
£450* per person
Minimum 4, maximum 12 attendees.
Discounts and adjusted prices are available for over 8 attendees and less than 4 attendees.
* Travel costs are included for delivery within a 2 hour (each way) travel time.
Other requirements e.g. national-international travel / overnights may incur additional cost depending on need. Full terms, conditions and pricing will be included in the training quotes issued.
Modules
1. Why Do It?
In this introductory module, we’ll explore the benefits of developing your own strategy. You’ll learn why sustainability strategies make sound commercial sense and how they create value.
2. Setting the Scene
In this module, you’ll learn what goes into getting sustainability strategy right. We’ll cover what preparatory work is needed before strategy development takes place, such as defining ambition, team structures, stakeholder expectations, scope, culture, baseline conditions, compliance, alignment, purpose and aiming for impactful outcomes.
3. What Good (and Bad) Looks Like
In this module, we’ll explore some of the better examples and some not so good examples of sustainability strategy, highlighting what success looks like.
4. Stakeholder Needs(T)
In this module, you’ll learn about internal and external stakeholders and their importance in strategy development, the frequency and methods of engagement and consultation. You’ll also explore stakeholder groups and external reputational review.
5. Deciding What’s Important(T)
In this module, you’ll be introduced into the concept of double materiality, a critical part of sustainability strategy development. You’ll learn the key definitions, what makes something material, analysis, hotspots, alignment with finance and the importance of ranking and prioritising issues.
6. First Strategic Steps – Foundation(T)
In this module, you’ll learn the key foundations of sustainability strategy development. You’ll learn where to take action, developing key strategic goals, alignment with standards and frameworks, establishing governance and the common pitfalls to avoid. You’ll also learn about setting appropriate objectives, targets, metrics and KPIs, how they’re applied across a business and how to construct programmes and roadmaps for future direction.
7. Building It In
In this module, you’ll learn the importance of integrating sustainability strategy properly, including areas of required and sustained leadership, performance monitoring, incentive planning and focus to ensure progress and success.
8. Committed to Success
In this module, you’ll learn how to successfully highlight your strategic sustainability ambitions and plans. We’ll cover making credible sustainability commitments, the relationship between mandatory and voluntary disclosure, external disclosure and recognition platforms and key considerations for impactful marketing.
Key:
Tailored Modules(T) will be developed in partnership with you, ensuring the course is more closely matched to your business. This helps deliver more immediate impact and value in the workplace.
Instructor
Matt Farnsworth
Matt is the founder and director of Pitchstone Consulting and a leading sustainability and ESG trainer, coach and advisor. Bringing over 25 years of sustainability and ESG experience, he has worked both in-house (most recently as Chief Sustainability Officer) and in global management consultancies helping deliver strategic and practical sustainable solutions for business and brands globally.
He has been published in The Times Newspaper, Real Deals, HR Magazine and Accountancy Age and is a Chartered Environmentalist (CEnv) and Fellow of the Institute of Sustainability and Environmental Professionals (FISEP).
He is also an ISEP Registered Principal Environmental Auditor, having conducted several hundred Environmental, Health & Safety, Social, Governance compliance and risk audits, reviews and M&A due diligence programmes internationally, across multiple sectors and industries.
He specialises in empowering business and individuals to achieve their sustainability goals, building efficient and more resilient business and supply chains.
Our Approach to Training
Social Good
Pitchstone delivers sustainability & ESG training that delivers real impact, helping build a more sustainable future
Empowering
It’s all about empowering business and individuals to do more with less. Prepare yourself and your teams with the right skills – you’ve got this!
You
A trusted partner, Pitchstone works with you to deliver what’s really needed, when you need it most