Sustainability Leadership is part of New Leadership and also enshrined in the 17 principles for new leadership. We take time to discover all 17 leadership principles .

What are we talking about when we talk about sustainability? Sustainability is increasingly becoming a strategic imperative. However, in business administration, various terms circulate, all describing only (large or small) aspects of sustainability. In the first module, we establish the context: Participants gain an overview of the fundamental laws, initiatives at the global and EU/national levels, frameworks, and approaches.

• Definition and understanding of sustainability and its aspects (ESG – economic, environmental, social).
• Global sustainability goals and legal requirements (e.g. Agenda 2030, UN Sustainable Development Goals and EU measures)
• Drivers and trends influencing sustainability, and measuring their impact
• Opportunities and growth potential associated with sustainable business practices
• Sustainability transformation – a simple transformation model for designing a sustainable company
• Building a sustainable company

Companies want to develop products and services based on sustainable standards. Business models are being adapted. In the second module, the team uses established and new methods to identify sustainability challenges as well as new opportunities for products, services, and business ventures. We examine the building blocks for future businesses and how they can be developed.

• Sustainability enablers – an overview of the relevant building blocks (technology, data, leadership, people and culture) that enable and accelerate the transition to a more sustainable organization.
• Sustainability design – How to use familiar methods to reduce complexity and develop sustainable products, services and business models (e.g., Design & Systems Thinking, Business Model Design).
• Recognizing opportunities – Learn about the latest methods and tools to unlock potential and achieve sustainability goals (e.g., ReSOLVE, Butterfly Model, Circular Economy).
• Sustainable business models – Discover strategies and best practices for designing sustainable business models (e.g., Closing The Loop, Green Supply Chain, etc.)

Sustainability in organizations is not a project, but the beginning of a profound cultural shift. In the third module, leaders learn how to decisively shape the framework for this shift, deal with resistance, develop communication strategies for sustainability and change, and thus support all stakeholders.

• Storytelling & Communication – Research and understand the needs of your stakeholders, develop key messages, communication strategies and structures, and a sustainability story.
• Responsible leadership – develop your leadership role and become a pioneer for greater sustainability in the company.
• The Hero’s Journey of Sustainability – Dealing with Team Motivations and Resistance (Role of Mentor, Enabler and Networker)

Sustainable leadership is so important because the environment for businesses is fundamentally changing. We are experiencing a transition from a shareholder-driven to a stakeholder-driven economy. New interest groups are setting new conditions for business success. Sustainable development is no longer managed by a small team, but is implemented by all managers and employees within a company.

Our Sustainable Leadership course provides the necessary content, concepts and tools to enable managers to familiarize themselves with the new conditions for sustainable corporate management and to live up to their responsibilities.

Sustainable Leadership Training supports your company by clarifying the responsibilities and opportunities for managers. New stakeholders with new interests create greater complexity. Making ethically sound decisions becomes more challenging. Our learning journey helps managers by clarifying the framework for businesses and providing new methods for making ethical and responsible decisions.

After all, it is about more than imparting skills; it is about strong identification with the new role and the conscious assumption of responsibility. And in the future, it will be about more than key figures, but about developing your own personality, the team and the company’s success.

The key principles of leadership training for sustainability are the acceptance of greater complexity and responsibility, as well as entrepreneurship. Complexity and sustainable entrepreneurship require new knowledge, skills, and tools. Our training offers all of this in a concise yet manageable format. This helps leaders learn these skills and put them into practice.

Ideally, every employee in a leadership role should participate, meaning business owners, senior managers, middle managers, and top executives. Our New Leadership principles are new to everyone, so we don’t impose any restrictions ourselves. In particular, the mix of top-level, middle, and senior managers often creates interesting dynamics and fruitful exchanges.

Each training or program is developed to meet the specific requirements of your company. This begins with a co-creation, concept phase, iterative improvements and a roll-out. We don’t do anything “off the shelf”, but immerse ourselves deeply in your culture and structure. In this way, our work becomes part of your organizational development.

Admittedly, this is a challenge. How do you combine universal New Leadership principles and new leadership skills with very specific, strategic topics such as digitalization, AI or sustainability?

And how do you adapt this to your company? We master this through our community of trainers from different disciplines, who are integrated into the development process from the outset and “speak the same language”. This means we cover a diverse range of topics, but work together with the same spirit.

All of the trainers in our community have their own leadership experience, have all completed in-depth external coaching and/or trainer education and have also taken part in our internal train-the-trainer programs.