Chief Sustainability Officer Resume Example & Writing Guide
Use this Chief Sustainability Officer resume example and guide to improve your career and write a powerful resume that will separate you from the competition.
As an organization’s chief sustainability officer, you’re tasked with creating a more sustainable future for your company—one that’s better for the planet and better for your bottom line.
As CSO, you’re a leader in environmental responsibility, corporate social responsibility, and other initiatives that promote positive change. You might work directly with the CEO to set sustainability goals and create an actionable plan to achieve them. Or you might work across business units to monitor performance and identify opportunities for improvement.
Regardless of the role you play in your company’s sustainability efforts, you’ll need a resume that showcases your passion for the environment and your expertise in green business practices. Follow these tips and resume example to write a CSO resume that hiring managers will love.
How to Write a Chief Sustainability Officer Resume
Here’s how to write a resume of your own.
Write Compelling Bullet Points
When you’re writing bullet points, it can be tempting to focus on the tasks and responsibilities of your job. But that’s not enough to make a compelling resume.
Instead, you should focus on the results of your work. For example, rather than saying you “managed sustainability initiatives,” you could say you “led sustainability initiatives to reduce energy consumption by 20% across all company locations, resulting in $2 million in annual savings.”
The second bullet point paints a much clearer picture of what you did and the results of your work. And it provides a quantifiable number to demonstrate your impact.
Identify and Include Relevant Keywords
When you apply for a chief sustainability officer role, your resume is likely to go through an applicant tracking system (ATS). This system looks for certain keywords related to the job in order to determine whether you’re a good fit. If your resume doesn’t include enough of the right terms, your application might not make it past the initial screening process.
To increase your chances of landing an interview, use this list of keywords as a guide:
- Sustainability
- Strategy
- Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)
- Environment
- Green Building
- Strategic Planning
- Executive Management
- Business Strategy
- Change Management
- Cross-functional Team Leadership
- Business Development
- Project Management
- Energy
- Leadership
- Management
- Public Speaking
- Marketing
- Operations Management
- Corporate Responsibility
- Business Analysis
- Strategy Development
- Organizational Leadership
- Change Management Consulting
- Negotiation
- Organizational Effectiveness
- Strategy Consulting
- Program Management
- Product Development
- Product Management
- Sustainability Consulting
Showcase Your Technical Skills
As a chief sustainability officer, you need to be proficient in a variety of software programs and systems in order to effectively manage and implement sustainability initiatives. This might include experience with energy management software, carbon accounting software, and water conservation software. You should also be familiar with sustainable development frameworks, such as the LEED Rating System and the Global Reporting Initiative.