Sustainable Business Strategy and ESG Leadership

Sustainable Business Strategy and ESG Leadership, offered by SBS Swiss Business School, is a two-day executive education course designed to help leaders and business professionals translate sustainability and ESG considerations into practical business strategies. The course focuses on how ESG factors influence business performance, risk, reputation, financing, supply chains, customers, employees, and long-term value creation, with an emphasis on practical leadership decisions rather than reporting alone.

Core Content

The course covers materiality assessment, ESG risks and opportunities, climate and supply-chain risks, human rights, governance, resource use, greenwashing, sustainability KPIs, stakeholder expectations, and ESG strategy. Participants explore how to connect sustainability priorities with business goals, define initiatives and ownership, establish measurable targets, and develop implementation plans that align sustainability actions with organisational priorities.

Key Skills

Participants will develop the ability to identify material ESG issues using stakeholder, impact, risk, and financial relevance criteria. The course builds skills in ESG strategy, sustainability risk assessment, climate and supply-chain risk management, KPI development, stakeholder engagement, greenwashing prevention, sustainability communication, roadmap development, and translating sustainability priorities into practical business initiatives.

Target Learners

This course is designed for executives, senior managers, business-unit leaders, strategy and transformation professionals, sustainability and ESG managers, and finance, risk, compliance, and audit professionals. It is also relevant for operations, procurement, supply-chain, HR, marketing, communications, consultants, entrepreneurs, and business owners who need to integrate sustainability into business decisions.

Learning Format

The course is delivered over two intensive days in either on-campus or live-virtual format. The on-campus programme takes place at the SBS Zurich Campus, with the upcoming edition scheduled for 13–14 November 2026. The course is taught in English and combines faculty input, practical frameworks, interactive discussions, case-based learning, and applied exercises. Participants develop a Sustainable Business and ESG Leadership Toolkit and receive an SBS Executive Education Certificate upon successful completion.

Additional Benefits

The course provides a practical leadership-focused approach to ESG, helping participants determine what sustainability issues matter, where action is required, how priorities should be measured, and how progress can be communicated credibly. SBS Swiss Business School is a Swiss state-accredited institution, and the course provides an opportunity to apply ESG frameworks and tools directly to real organisational challenges in an international executive learning environment.

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