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Sustainability Leadership and Strategy Programme

Architect sustainable business strategies for competitive advantage

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DURATION

6 months

Online and Live Virtual

PROGRAMME FEE

and get €500 off with a referral

ELIGIBILITY

A minimum of 7 years of work experience

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Lead through sustainability: Navigating the new strategic frontier

The INSEAD Executive Education Sustainability Leadership and Strategy Programme provides a rigorous, multidisciplinary framework designed for leaders who realise that sustainability in business is moving from a compliance-driven obligation to a source of competitive advantage.

Delivered over six months, the programme will equip you with the analytical tools to use sustainability as a business continuity and competitive advantage asset, navigate complex regulatory landscapes and apply AI-driven insights to mitigate climate risks. Through a combination of live simulations and expert-led modules, you will enhance your ability to make strategic decisions in a world where environmental and societal impact competence and financial performance are inextricably linked. The programme will also help you understand how to use AI in the context of strategic sustainability initiatives and business models.

By integrating impact measurement with advanced strategic frameworks, the programme ensures you emerge as a visionary architect of long-term, sustainable value creation in an increasingly volatile global business context.

Key takeaways: Sustainability Leadership and Strategy Programme

  • Take a proactive approach to solving known and future sustainability challenges by developing innovative strategies and practical frameworks.

  • Apply an understanding of current sustainability challenges to incorporate the evolving policy landscape and manage future developments as they emerge.

  • Articulate how your organisation’s activities are disrupted by environmental or societal challenges, and develop timely and relevant sustainability initiatives.

  • Identify change opportunities to bridge business continuity and competitive advantage gaps, and shape your organisation’s behaviour through an action plan to lead business sustainability initiatives effectively.

Who is this programme for?

The Sustainability Leadership and Strategy Programme is primarily designed for:

  • Business owners, C-suite leaders, policy-makers and other decision-makers seeking to make sustainability a focus in their organisation;

  • Senior executives or project management experts aiming to acquire sustainability know-how and transition to a leadership role; and

  • Business units or country heads wanting to respond to sustainability-related opportunities and risks.

Participants are required to:

  • Have more than seven years of work experience; and

  • Be in a leadership or decision-making role with authority to influence policy.

Hear from the programme director

Hear from the programme director

“Organisations today require astute leaders who can ensure their operations are environmentally and socially responsible while improving the bottom line, building brand value and deepening stakeholder trust. INSEAD Executive Education imparts the skills needed to successfully integrate sustainable business practices across all aspects of the enterprise and forge a sustainable way forward for value creation at your company.”

– Atalay Atasu

Programme Director; INSEAD Professor of Technology and Operations Management; The Bianca and James Pitt Chair in Environmental Sustainability; Academic Director, INSEAD Hoffmann Institute.

I had already taken courses on sustainability, but I was waiting for a program from INSEAD. When I discovered it, I enrolled without hesitation – and it was absolutely worth it. The program content, learning format and faculty were truly excellent. My fellow participants were all wonderful. The people I continue to meet through the INSEAD network are always inspiring. Additionally, the days in Fontainebleau at the end of the program were unforgettable – a continuous exchange in an international context, full of new ideas and reflections. Last but not least, I’m very happy I chose the sustainability track. I feel strongly that this is the path to navigate today’s context with resilience, grow with a competitive edge and look ahead with confidence....
Image relating to Valeria Ferrero
Valeria Ferrero
Head of Marketing and Business Development | ESG Strategy at Ersel
I consider ESG to be a turning point in the business. This programme clearly helped me reboot my career with a new role at Workday. This is a high-value programme, for sure.
Guillaume Tourres
Guillaume Tourres
Head Of Communication, Southern Europe,
Workday
The programme has enhanced my understanding of sustainability as a strategic business imperative. It has equipped me with the knowledge and tools to integrate sustainable practices into decision-making. It has also inspired me to prioritise sustainability – not only in my current professional role, but as a personal commitment and lifelong goal. ...
Fouad El Bacha
Fouad El Bacha
Chief Executive Officer,
Union Chlorine
I joined the programme to explore strategic challenges around sustainability and network with peers. It helped me understand in depth the challenges involved in creating sustainable practices and opened the door to the INSEAD community. If you have the time available, it provides a great learning experience, valuable networking opportunities and access to INSEAD’s global ecosystem....
John Lunn
John Lunn
Managing Director
Carbon Provenance

Past participant profile

Work Experience

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Top Industries

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Top Countries

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Where past learners come from

Disclaimer: All product and company names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders. Use of product and company names does not imply any affiliation with or endorsement by the holders.

The list of companies is only indicative and not exhaustive.

Learn to lead on every level

The Sustainability Leadership and Strategy Programme will hone your leadership capabilities across four critical aspects for success.
Steward

Prepare to contribute to business sustainability governance, and identify real risks and opportunities at an early stage.

Agitator

Understand how to effectively challenge the status quo and bring a range of strategic perspectives on business sustainability to your organisation.

Facilitator

Learn to strategically broker conversations, mediate conflicts and resolve trade-offs related to sustainable business practices.

Executor

Emerge ready to take the lead in delivering change and mobilise your organisation to implement sustainable business models.

What you will learn in the Sustainability Leadership and Strategy Programme

The programme curriculum is structured across five integrated pillars interspersed with live virtual sessions. The curriculum starts with challenging the traditional "Triple Bottom Line" perspective and goes beyond it to explore the frontiers of market and value creation, challenging you to redesign value chains and influence consumer behaviour. You will engage with the complexities of group dynamics and systemic change, developing a sophisticated leadership voice capable of driving institutional transformation.

Move beyond theory through high-stakes simulations and by utilising systems thinking and AI-driven insights to model how climate change fundamentally reshapes business sustainability and strategic decision-making.

  • Frameworks: The Triple Bottom Line and the Four Stakeholders

  • Nature as a Stakeholder

  • Consumers and Regulators

  • Sustainable Business in Execution

Transition from risk mitigation to value creation by focusing on the mechanics of sustainable willingness to pay and market creation. Explore how to identify strategic opportunities, using innovation to transform sustainability into a core driver of competitive advantage and market differentiation.

  •  Sustainability as a Strategic Opportunity

  • Sustainable Willingness to Pay Creation

  • Market Creation and Segmentation

Navigate the complexities of designing and executing a circular business model. Learn why circularity is the next big disruptor in the context of sustainability, and identify and overcome real practical obstacles to circularity. Also, learn to scale circular initiatives while considering the broader geopolitical implications and financial realities.

  • Introduction to the Circular Economy

  • Designing for Circularity

  • Obstacles to Circularity – Refining Value, Access and Process (VAP)

  • Circularity Execution

  • The Takeaway – A Circular Business Model Framework

Equip yourself with the technical fluency required to lead in an era of radical transparency. Explore the future of sustainability measurement, learn to navigate the regulatory landscape and build credible, purpose-driven organisational structures.

  • Setting the Stage: Sustainability Measurement and Reporting

  • Credible Purpose, Incentive Design and Ratings

  • Impact-Weighted Accounting and Standard-Setting

  • Regulation, Standard-Setting and Valuation

Learn how to navigate the complexities of your role as a business sustainability leader and the issues you will encounter, through courage, emotional intelligence and an ability to read room dynamics. Analyse your leadership capacity relative to your role and learn to deal with changes in complex systems while recognising the inevitability of actions within dynamic systems.

  • Dynamic Systems

  • Group Dynamics

  • Sustainability Perspectives and Authority

  • Credibility and Communication

  • Developing a Leadership Voice

Note: The list of topics is non-exhaustive and subject to change.

Live online sessions: Strategic integration, AI applications and systems thinking

Engage in a series of high-impact strategic simulations and expert-led forums designed to bridge the gap between academic rigour and organisational transformation. These live sessions serve as the programme’s interactive nexus, challenging you to apply systemic frameworks to real-world volatility, from AI-driven sustainability risk and opportunity assessment to the intricacies of global challenges. Throughout the six-month journey, these sessions provide a collaborative platform to stress-test strategies and refine your leadership voice alongside INSEAD faculty and global peers.

  • From Systems Thinking to Strategic Sustainability Decisions with Atalay Atasu: Experience a high-stakes simulation to master the dynamics of resource management and the long-term consequences of competitive strategy.

  • AI and Sustainability with Anton Ovchinnikov: Examine the intersection of AI and sustainability, exploring environmental, social and governance challenges of AI and how AI can drive more sustainable outcomes.

  • Creating Value, Sustainable Willingness to Pay and Scaling Sustainability with Karel Cool: Examine the strategic levers required to translate sustainability into tangible value, and excel at operational transition from niche implementation to broad-scale market adoption.

  • Sustainability and Innovation with Manuel Sosa: Explore innovation across technology, product and ecosystem levels to drive sustainability transformation and tackle key leadership challenges.

  • Net Present Value Plus (NPV+) and Getting to Scale with Atalay Atasu: Gain proficiency in the financial and operational metrics required to move sustainable business initiatives from pilot projects to scalable corporate assets.

  • Geopolitics and Sustainability with Guillaume Pitron: Examine the complex intersection of global power dynamics, resource scarcity and the shifting landscape of international sustainability policy.

  • Regulation, Standards and the Future of Governance with Peter Joos: Navigate the evolving global mandate for transparency and the strategic implications of emerging reporting frameworks.

  • Stop Guessing, Start Testing: Smarter Decisions for Sustainable Value Creation with So Yeon Chun: Learn to use structured, data-driven pilots and experimentation to test ideas, minimise risk and make better sustainability decisions that deliver lasting value.

  • Performance and Progress with Subi Rangan: Synthesise the programme’s strategic learnings into a coherent framework to move from compliance-focused thinking towards strategic value creation for driving measurable progress and high-level organisational performance.

Note: Live session topics and faculty are indicative and subject to change.

On-campus networking event (two days | optional)

Get the opportunity to meet your cohort peers in person on the Europe Campus in Fontainebleau during an optional two-day networking event that will feature in-person faculty sessions and simulations. This networking event brings together graduates from multiple cohorts, giving you the unique chance to network with executives worldwide and become part of a lifelong community of global leaders.
INSEAD Emeritus SEPO Networking Event Group Photo
INSEAD Emeritus SEPO Networking Event Photo
INSEAD Emeritus SEPO Networking Event Photo
INSEAD Emeritus SEPO Networking Event Photo
INSEAD Emeritus SEPO Networking Event Photo
INSEAD Emeritus SEPO Networking Event Photo

Note: The networking event is held once a year, which brings together participants from different senior executive programmes.

INSEAD Affiliate status: A lifelong connection to excellence

Upon successful completion of the programme, you are granted lifelong INSEAD Affiliate status, formalising an enduring relationship with INSEAD that extends well beyond the classroom. This status recognises your commitment to institutional transformation and integrates you into a structured ecosystem of continuous professional development.

As an INSEAD Affiliate, you will maintain a direct link to the frontiers of management thinking through:

  • Lifelong learning access: Invitations to exclusive webinars and selected pop-up programmes that address emerging global challenges in real time;

  • The INSEAD Learning Hub: A premium subscription providing curated, high-quality digital content;

  • Continued executive development: A preferential rate of 15% off future INSEAD Executive Education programmes, supporting your growth as your strategic responsibilities evolve; and

  • Curated insights: Regular newsletters featuring thought leadership and strategic updates to keep you at the vanguard of sustainable business practice.

 

This lifelong affiliation ensures that as the global landscape of sustainability and strategy shifts, you remain equipped with the academic rigour and peer insights necessary to lead with confidence.

Seamless Learning, Anywhere

Learn with AI Tutor

Get instant replies to your questions about programme content from our AI Tutor. Find the information you need to learn more confidently and move through topics and key learnings.

Meet the faculty

The global team of cross-disciplinary INSEAD faculty includes experts in sustainable operations management, strategic management and business management.

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Atalay Atasu

Programme Director; INSEAD Professor of Technology and Operations Management; The Bianca and James Pitt Chair in Environmental Sustainability; Academic Director, INSEAD Hoffmann Institute

Dr. Atalay Atasu's research focus is on socially and environmentally responsible operations management, with topics of interest including the circular economy, extended produc...

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Peter Joos

Dean of Faculty; Deputy Dean of INSEAD; Professor of Accounting and Control; The Barons Janssen Endowed Professorship, The Sauvage Family Endowed Chair for Academic Excellence

Peter Joos is Deputy Dean, Dean of Faculty, and Professor of Accounting and Control at INSEAD, where he holds the Sauvage Family Endowed Chair for Academic Excellence and the ...

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Karel Cool

Professor of Strategic Management; The BP Chaired Professor of European Competitiveness

Karel Cool is Professor of Strategy and the BP Chaired Professor of European Competitiveness at INSEAD. His research and teaching focus on competitive strategy, industry dynam...

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Subramanian Rangan

Professor of Strategy and Management; The Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Court Endowed Chair in Societal Progress

Subi Rangan received an MBA from the MIT Sloan School of Management and a Ph.D. in political economy from Harvard University.

His research explores the evolution of capitalis...

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Declan Fitzsimons

Senior Affiliated Professor of Organisational Behaviour

Declan Fitzsimons is Senior Affiliated Professor of Organisational Behaviour at INSEAD. He holds a PhD from the school of Management at Cranfield University, UK. His research ...

Anton Ovchinnikov Image

Anton Ovchinnikov

Associate Professor of Decision Sciences

Manuel Sosa Image

Manuel Sosa

Professor of Technology and Operations Management

So Yeon Chun Image

So Yeon Chun

Associate Professor of Technology and Operations Management

Programme facilitator

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Alla Idrisova

Sustainability and Leadership Executive Coach

Alla Idrisova is an experienced senior executive and entrepreneur, adeptly merging a strong academic foundation with practical expertise in management consulting, executive co...

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Rachid Kherrouf

CFO, Greenpeace

Rachid Kherrouf is a seasoned financial expert renowned for his leadership and international career journey through various esteemed organisations. Armed with a strong educati...

Note: Featured here are past programme facilitators and will be updated for the upcoming cohort.

Certificate

Certificate

Upon completion of the programme, participants will be awarded a verified digital certificate by INSEAD Executive Education.

Sustainability at INSEAD

From teaching on environmental management in the late 1980s to exploring the circular economy in the early 2000s, INSEAD has pioneered sustainable business education and is at the forefront of many sustainability focus areas. Achievements include the following:

  • INSEAD is a member of the Business Schools for Climate Leadership (BS4CL) initiative with other leading business schools in Europe. In 2024, the second BS4CL Forum was held at the Europe Campus, where over 100 representatives gathered to discuss potential solutions for tackling the climate crisis.

  • INSEAD is a major academic partner for the annual ChangeNOW Summit, the world's largest environmental and social impact summit.

  • In 2023, INSEAD renewed its flagship MBA curriculum, embedding sustainability in all 14 core courses and introducing a mandatory capstone, reinforcing its leadership in sustainable business education.

  • INSEAD faculty continue to pioneer the latest sustainability research and publish many sustainability-focused case studies. 

  • As a member of the United Nations Academic Impact initiative, INSEAD integrates sustainability into its operations in alignment with the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

FAQs

The INSEAD Sustainability Leadership and Strategy Programme follows an immersive learning process. Participants are expected to fulfil a certain minimum criterion to earn the Certificate of Completion.

As participants progress through each learning module, reviewing the weekly content, they earn points for each activity. Participants need to have earned a certain minimum number of points at the end of each core module and elective. To earn the programme completion certificate, participants are required to complete a minimum of 80 percent of all in-platform learning activities.

On-campus attendance is optional for this programme. You will have the opportunity to participate in an on-campus immersion and networking event at the end of the programme. However, the curriculum is fully online and consists of a mix of recorded video and live virtual sessions with fellow participants, learning coach and faculty.

Yes, of course! The learning experience is especially designed to encourage interaction and simulate as close an experience to face-to-face interaction as possible. Participants can interact with each other through discussion forums, live forums, webinars and virtual networking interspersed throughout the learning journey.

In addition, the programme concludes with an optional in-person immersion and networking event.

Yes, we purposefully manage class sizes to ensure ample faculty-to-participant time. INSEAD faculty will also regularly read and respond to your comments in the discussion forums. The faculty is assisted in these interactions by the learning coach, acting as a bridge between the participants and the faculty.

The Sustainability Leadership and Strategy Programme has been designed with your busy schedule in mind. You will be required to commit not more than three to five hours per week, enabling you to benefit from this impactful programme while balancing your work responsibilities. The programme offers a blend of self-paced modules and live interaction.

The learning journey includes live and asynchronous online sessions with renowned faculty, industry experts and global peers. You can take advantage of regular live sessions and the Slack channel to ask questions and discuss ideas with your programme facilitator and cohort participants. Real-world examples and a debrief of the programme learnings are delivered through a combination of recorded video and live online lectures.

Yes, we provide closed-captioning and transcripts for all pre-recorded videos as well as closed-captioning for recordings of live sessions.

Eruditus collects all programme payments, provides learner enrolment and programme support, and manages learning platform services. INSEAD is collaborating with Emeritus (part of the Eruditus Group) to offer a portfolio of high-impact programs.

For the programme refund and deferral policy, please click the link here.

Programme fees for Emeritus programmes with INSEAD may not be paid for with (a) funds from the GI Bill, the Post-9/11 Educational Assistance Act of 2008 or similar types of military education funding benefits or (b) Title IV financial aid funds.

While not a formal academic degree, this sustainability leadership course features a modular curriculum that ensures a rigorous blend of strategic leadership frameworks and technical depth, without the full-time commitment of a sustainability management degree.  Participants will also receive a verified digital certificate from INSEAD Executive Education.

This programme is designed for C-suite executives, business unit leaders, policymakers and senior decision-makers responsible for embedding sustainability strategy across functions and geographies. It is ideal for leaders seeking advanced sustainable management training and requires a minimum of seven years of work experience.

Connect with a programme adviser for a 1:1 session

Email: INSEAD_SL@emeritus.org

Phone: 000 8009191971 (India*)/+65 3129 7301 (Singapore)/+44 1416 732351 (UK)/+1 234 603 6577 (US)/+971 80 0088601096 (UAE)/+52 55965 46131 (LATAM)

*If you are dialing the India number, please make sure to include the first three zeros (000).

Early applications are encouraged. Admissions are reviewed on a first-come, first-served basis.

Flexible payment options available.

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