The sustainability transformation

Sustainability is fundamentally an inter-temporal concept. It requires us to include considerations relevant to future generations into our current decision-making. While this may seem a common approach when thinking about your own children, it is a difficult concept to entertain in a corporate environment. Key stakeholder expectations, competitive pressure, and incentive systems typically do not reward such overtly selfless behaviour. In addition, the complex and ubiquitous nature of sustainability makes it very challenging to apply even familiar professional tools to address the challenge. Rather, we must approach sustainability as a transformation: we have a clear goal but may expect many surprises on the road. Given its relevance for planetary survival, it may be the most significant transformation in our own and our children’s lifetime. While both sustainability, as well as transformation, is not a new concept, the notion of sustainability as a transformation is relatively new. Research on sustainable leadership is sketchy. This chapter analyses a use case of implementing a zero-emission target in an insurance operation. The use case serves as common ground for operations and change practitioners to discuss wider reaching concepts of sustainable leadership, a discussion that is far from concluded. It seems clear however, that a sustainability transformation will require endurance and a subtle balance between boldness and modesty, including the readiness to revise convictions and perceptions we hold dear should necessity demand it. No one will claim to be able to oversee the entire transformation journey