First-of-its-kind training program designed to nurture future leaders

Business School of Lausanne, University of St. Gallen and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development launch a unique Executive program in Sustainable Business.

Business School of Lausanne (BSL), University of St. Gallen (IWÖ-HSG) and World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) have joined forces to launch a first-of-its-kind Diploma in Sustainable Business, designed to nurture future business leaders.
The program offers a unique setting in which participants can acquire the new skills and competencies required to lead the sustainability agenda in business, and apply them directly in a practical consulting project.
The Diploma in Sustainable Business brings together experts from IWÖ-HSG’s renowned Institute for Economy and the Environment, specialists in interdisciplinary learning and training from BSL and business and sustainability professionals from the WBCSD. The year-long course will address global sustainability challenges, explore their strategic implications and assess their impacts via lectures, corporate visits, exchanges with NGOs and outdoors sessions.
Modules will be taught by thought leaders from academia, government, non-governmental organizations and business leaders. The Diploma in Sustainable Development is aimed at participants who want to develop their skills in the sustainability field, integrate sustainability into their existing area of responsibility or become sustainability experts.
Dr. Katrin Muff, Dean, BSL, said: “Equipping leaders at all levels with the competences to embrace the emerging environmental, societal and business challenges of the next decades globally is our main aim. We are using the latest pedagogical methods and highly innovative circular learning methods to ensure that participants leave the program with everything they need to lead responsibly and sustainably in any situation and organization they choose.”
Prof. Dr. Thomas Dyllick, Professor for Sustainability Management, University of St. Gallen, said: “What makes our new program special is the particular mix of subject competence in the sustainability field combined with leading-change skills and their practical application. We want participants to not just know what to do, we also want them to be able to do it."
Margaret Flaherty, Chief Operating Officer, WBCSD, said: “We are delighted to be collaborating with such esteemed academic institutions on this new diploma. The WBCSD is uniquely placed to provide the business perspective on global sustainability challenges and we are excited to be contributing our knowledge and experience - - by making our reports and publications available, as well as staff to lead sessions - - to help train future leaders.”
The part time Diploma in Sustainable Business is run in association with the World Business School Council for Sustainable Business.

Sustainable Brands

This blog post profiles a fascinating company in the USA called Sustainable Life Media, a leading producer of sustainable business conferences and educational events, with supporting products and services that include targeted e-newsletters, an online learning resource and community and more.

SLM says, "we are here to inspire and support innovation for sustainability by linking people with ideas and solutions that are creating positive change in the global business marketplace." The company aspires to be an example of the kind of business they hope to encourage, seeing business basics like customer focus and quality to be just that -- basic. 

They believe that the bar is being raised for tomorrow's business leaders, and want to be at the front of the train -- not the back. This means extending commitments beyond the basics, to things like a pursuit of both purpose AND profit. To being transparent, to collaboration, and to being more environmentally aware. 

SLM notes "We're serious about reducing our impact on the environment, and as a company whose business will result in air travel and congregation of thousands of people each year, we realize we have a responsibilty to be part of the solution. For this reason, we're eliminating hand outs in conference sessions, offsetting our carbon emissions, and in other ways, will continually look for ways to improve our environmental performance."

SLM knows that their preferred Suppliers can help drive business-to-business demand for more "sustainable" (environmentally or socially beneficial) products and services. For this reason, they give preference when possible, to partners and service providers who are also on the path to sustainability.

One of SLM's main events, Sustainable Brands ’11, which runs from June 7-10th, in Monterey California. This is where the sustainability, brand & design communities come together for the 5th year to discuss how better brands can succeed by helping shape a brighter future.  Reawaken your sense of the possible as you learn how sustainable brand leaders are making smarter strategic moves, developing new problem-solving skills, and inspiring others to help them bring healthier, smarter brands to market.

They will have 750+ Attendees, 120+ Speaker and  80+ Sessions on issues like

• Business Drivers and Innovation Strategy     
• Sustainable Design & Packaging              
• Brand Communication, PR and Marketing Best Practices              
• Supply Chain, Sourcing, & Community Partnerships              
• Culture & Brand.

See the interactive program guide here.

Download the Green Event Guide to learn more about how SLM tries to consider the environment when planning their events, as inspiration for your own!

Upcoming blog posts in 2011

This space is for all those who wish to contribute to business & management by embracing our responsibility to become a positive force in solving the burning issues of the 21st century. 

We aim to inspire business practitioners to apply their experience to cutting edge business research, and to share breakthrough thinking with the world. 

We will focus on topics that contribute to the well-being of the business community and of the planet. Themes include:

1. Business sustainability and ethics

• Embedding sustainability into the core strategies
• Clarifying requirements and examples of truly sustainable products and services
• Developing tools, solutions and measurements to make business sustainable

2. Entrepreneurship and strategic thinking

• Developing entrepreneurial approaches to strategic development (e.g. blue ocean strategies)
• Organizing objectives, resources and decision-making effectively and sustainably
• Improving approaches to ensure effective implementation of ideas and goals

3. Leadership and management effectiveness

• New approaches to develop reflective and courageous leaders (e.g. coaching)
• Developing new solutions for managerial, personal and operational effectiveness
• Exploring effective ways for team and communication effectiveness

4. Alternative business models and new ideas

• Integrating business profitability with sustainability
• New models to ensure effective corporate governance
• Applying emerging ideas (e.g. brand aesthetics, understanding customer satisfaction)

5. Higher business education

• Explore new ways to create powerful and safe learning environments
• Clarify requirements for business schools to prepare future leaders
• Explore and integrate new ideas and concepts to address and deal with future challenges