Chief Sustainability Officers: Symbolic or Substantial? (2023)

Undergraduate: Alexandra Hatsios

Faculty Advisor: Jeffrey Mittelstadt
Department: Kenan Flagler

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Businesses have begun to realize the environmental, social, and economic benefits that they can unleash by integrating sustainability into business strategy. As a result, firms have elevated sustainability responsibilities to senior leadership with the introduction of the Chief Sustainability Officer (CSO). However, many companies are still hesitant to adopt a CSO. Critics believe that the decision is symbolic rather than substantive. Further, my research seeks to understand the symbolic vs. substantial impact of CSO equivalents at large companies relative to climate-related measures. I use a mixed methods design, employing both statistical and qualitative analyses. My quantitative findings reveal that CSO presence is associated with target setting and temperature alignment, and CSO sustainability related expertise is a statistically significant factor in decarbonization target variation. My qualitative results indicate that CSOs are most impactful when they have a mix of technical, strategic, and soft skills, along with board support and ample resources. These factors allow CSOs to communicate across many internal and external stakeholders. Given my findings, along with evidence from prior literature, I argue that companies can maximize the substantive impact of their CSO through hiring and placement decisions that prioritize collaboration across all stakeholder groups.

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