7 Factors to Consider When Looking for a Sustainable Job
Environmental, social, and governance jobs (ESG jobs) typically have a positive impact on the world around them. Finding a job that positively impacts society, the environment, or both is known as finding a sustainable job. As consumer demand shifts to social responsibility and sustainability, the importance of finding a sustainable job is only now coming to light.
While finding a sustainable job is important, there are some factors that should be considered. It’s more than just doing a Google search for “sustainable jobs” and seeing what pops up. Here’s what you need to know.
Objective Sustainability
Sometimes, sustainability is objective. A sustainable company may knowingly engage in questionable practices without effort to improve because their ESG score is within an acceptable range. Do you really want to pour your effort, talent, and time into a company that isn’t really looking to improve its impact on the world around it? Some companies use it as a title enhancer, but there are many factors to consider regarding sustainability.
Stay in Your Lane
When looking for a sustainable job, you still want to consider your personal talents. If your talent is in finance, then finding a sustainable job in finance is your goal. While you may ultimately learn new skills, you don’t have to do a complete overhaul of your talents to successfully find a sustainable job.
ESG Scores
Finding a sustainable job means understanding a lot about ESG scores and what goes into them. It’s important to know that there are no industry regulations or standards for ESG scores, so you’ll need to do the research yourself, but it will be very beneficial. Understanding what goes into ESG scores and how to improve them opens a world of opportunities when it comes to finding a sustainable job.
Greenwashing
If you’re in the process of finding a sustainable job, then you’ll likely come across companies engaged in greenwashing. Greenwashing is marketing sustainable ethics when a company really engages in profit-based ethics and activities. There are companies whose ESG scores measure the impact of the world on the company instead of the other way around. They prey on the ignorance of investors to continue widening their profit margin.
Climate Risk
Some regulatory changes going forward will include disclosure for risks and opportunities related to climate change. This goes back to environmental impact because a company whose activities contribute to global warming will ultimately increase climate risk and vice versa. Finding a sustainable job means understanding the activities and opportunities which revolve around climate risk.
Ethics and Morals
Ethics and morals play a big role in finding a sustainable job. There are many jobs and opportunities available in the ESG sector which may not involve good morals or ethics. If a company uses slave labor to reduce its carbon footprint, then is it really a sustainable company? Many ESG scores do not consider morals and ethics, so having your own system to research these things is important.
Performance
A company’s performance must be tied to more than just profits. Profits are vital, but so is social responsibility and sustainability. Right now, businesses rely on ESG scores and think leaders in the industry to improve their environmental impact. Going forward, they will need a way to improve without sacrificing huge profits.
Finding a Sustainable Job
Finding a sustainable job means you must first have your personal goals in order. You’ll need to understand your options and how you can improve the world around you. It’s important to understand a lot about this new industry. You must decipher ESG scores, morals and ethics, objective values, and several other components which impact sustainability. Finding a sustainable job may take a little work, but it is well worth the effort to promote responsibility in business and in the world around you.
