Deadline for application: 23 April 2023

The World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) is the premier global, CEO-led community of over 200 of the world’s leading sustainable businesses working collectively to accelerate the system transformations needed for a net zero, nature-positive and more equitable future.

We share a vision of a world in which more than 9 billion people are able to live well, within planetary boundaries, by 2050. To achieve this vision, we must collectively accelerate the required transformation of businesses, their value chains, and the systems in which they operate to limit the impact of the climate crisis, restore nature and tackle inequality.

How our community works

Our community leads positive change through our imperative work by building the infrastructure of a better world through climate, nature and equity action. In our distinct pathways, we outline the critical transitions required in some of the significant areas of business activity to profoundly shift the systems we work in and transform them towards a better future. Together we succeed when our collective effort is rewarded through a lower cost of capital, which is the scope of our redefining value work; helping companies measure and manage risk, gain competitive advantage and seize new opportunities by understanding environmental, social and governance (ESG) information.

WBCSD’s contribution

WBCSD stimulates progress by ideating & level-setting new best practices and trends from different expertise & sectors. By improving performance, we enable standards and protocols supported by tools and technology to solidify businesses’ sustainability competence. We build partnerships by bringing together members and external partners to create coalitions and partnerships and build scale into change. Finally, we drive the policy agenda by amplifying the voice of positive business and shaping policies collaboratively to transform the systems we work in.

Our work aims to empower business leaders to raise their ambition to achieve a better world, deliver action at speed and scale in their operations and value chains, and sharpen the accountability of their performance.

Job Overview

The Senior Director, Policy and Advocacy and Member Mobilization, will lead WBCSD’s contribution to shape the international sustainable development policy agenda in line with WBCSD’s Vision 2050. This will be achieved through identifying, co-developing and syndicating business-orientated leadership propositions for policies and partnerships. These arise from WBCSD’s various collective action work with members and partners to help scale and accelerate action for tackling climate change, nature loss, rising inequality and capital market recognition of leading sustainability performance. WBCSD is not a lobbying organization. It works with its members and partners to promote the ambitious policy environment that enables leadership action, by business.

Responsibilities and duties

• Lead the build and delivery of an impactful policy and advocacy strategy for WBCSD with support from the EVP Imperatives and the WBCSD Leadership Team, including development of KPIs to report on progress regularly to the Leadership Team.
• Focus efforts on advancing the organisation’s priority content areas, including Corporate Accountability, Climate Action (including COP28 and future Climate COPs), Nature Positive Business, Tackling Inequality and promoting WBCSD’s Corporate Education proposition.
• Identify, foster and manage productive and impactful relationships between WBCSD and key international, regional and national organisations, entities and institutions, and its members in line with advancing WBCSD’s vision and strategy for policy and advocacy, at the appropriate levels within each organisation.
• Lead, manage and grow a team of direct reports; involve and influence staff across a highly interconnected, matrix-based organisation; and grow and deepen WBCSD member company engagement in the policy and advocacy strategy.
• Represent WBCSD at (international) sustainable development convenings and with external stakeholders to enhance WBCSD’s profile as a trusted partner to help policymakers consider practical, business-orientated approaches to tackle climate change, nature loss and rising inequality.

Qualifications Skills and Experience

• Background: at least Master’s degree level education in a relevant discipline.
• Proven public and private experience: at least 15 years’ experience of engagement with and knowledge of international sustainable development organisations and institutions and global business interactions, including shaping policy agendas and building partnerships.
• Market knowledge: Knowledge of the international ecosystem of NGOs, government entities, international and regional organisations and other influential entities working on sustainability challenges of relevance to WBCS
• Strategy, and Project Management: Demonstrable experience in highly networked project management, team management and institutional navigation skills; with the ability to structure a strategic, agile and pertinent multi-year policy and advocacy program; with proven accountability for achieving influence and impact expectations and delivery of tangible outcomes.
• Lead and develop teams: Demonstrable expertise in providing feedback and development guidance to others to help them excel while also planning and supporting the development of their individual skills and abilities; share responsibilities with them to stretch their capabilities and pass on decision-making and accountability while accomplishing business strategic priorities.
• Facilitation and Stakeholder Engagement: Evidence of successful engagement with a wide range of international stakeholders within and across the private and public sectors (from business CEO/C-suite representatives to technical experts, government officials and other leading policy, academic or NGO stakeholders), with experience creating a shared vision, and ability to build collaboration and partnerships across such diverse groups.
• Communication: Engaging communicator across cultures and between the private and public sector, both in person and in writing such that complex ideas, thoughts and concepts are clearly articulated for both a general and specialist audience. At ease in summarising and synthesising issues and identifying means to address them.
• Diplomacy and sensitivity to different opinions and approaches, managing a range of views and interests with first-class negotiation and facilitation skills.

The position is full-time, based in Geneva, New York, Amsterdam or London, and will require international travel. The position reports to the EVP Imperatives.

The Work Environment

WBCSD offers a competitive, modern, and flexible working arrangement:

• Geneva-based organization with offices in Amsterdam, Beijing, London, New York and Singapore
• Competitive compensation and benefits
• State-of-the-art facilities and ICT-enabled working tools
• Flex-time and part-time possibilities
• Dynamic working atmosphere
• Open culture encouraging interaction and sharing of ideas and opinions
• International relocation support
• Sustainable commuting incentives

Please also note that WBCSD will only respond to candidates selected for the interview process.