Meet our Climate Manager
The title as Climate Manager is on the verge of becoming more common in both large and medium-sized companies. Early examples are Norlys and COOP who both have brought their own Climate Manager on board within the last two years.
The trend is right now for top management to become more aware of the importance of having a Climate Manager. They are realizing how much work and effort go into contributing to the green transition and to changing both habits and viewpoints with suppliers, co-op partners, employees, and clients.
Interim – the Way to Go
For the position as Climate Manager an interim candidate can be a valuable solution, according to Jesper Kirkebække Jensen, PhD in Economics, independent advisor focusing on collaboration on climate action.
A Climate Manager as a temporary hiring, possibly part-time, can prove to be a great way to proceed. A company can be up and running in no time and test various set-ups, efforts, and initiatives without engaging in a costly permanent hiring.
This can be a plausible solution to some companies, especially if they need time to develop their approach to the green transition and find their own sustainable way.
Other companies may face an acute need for the right resources and experienced competences to invoke quick progress and the right focus.
An interim manager with strong skills and competences as well as vast experience with climate strategy and processes can ensure an effective climate journey.
The Biggest Challenge
As an advisor to many different companies and stakeholders, Jesper Kirkebække Jensen has a solid grip on the most common corporate challenges within climate action.
There is increasing demands and expectations to climate management in all companies. How do we integrate climate targets into our company decision making? Are our products sustainable? How far are we with our climate accounting and our climate strategy?
“However, the biggest challenge to many companies is to keep a continuous focus on the climate footprint of the company. That is, how the individual employee, supplier, or client every day can contribute and collaborate on lowering the company’s climate footprint.”
In a busy daily life, it can be difficult to detect signals about eg.:
- climate risks in the supply chains
- sustainability demands from the clients
- the employees’ expectations to credible climate action
It is not an easy job to gather ideas for climate initiatives and create coherence in the many climate initiatives deriving from a company. Consequently, some have turned to hiring a Climate Manager.
Jesper Kirkebække Jensen has worked with climate strategies since 1994, been an advisor to the EU Commission and the Danish Climate Council, contributed to the United Nation’s Climate Panel. With a Ph.D. in Economics and specializing in economic analysis of climate strategies, Jesper has also been advisor to decision makers with Deloitte and the OECD. Today, he works with companies on their green transition.
