Significant Career Lesson From a Senior Manager Sustainability at Protiviti
The most significant lesson Casey learned is the importance of breaking down large tasks into manageable projects, especially in the complex field of corporate sustainability; as Casey noted, it's about finding "where's the biggest bucket" for impactful change and tackling it step-by-step, rather than getting overwhelmed by the amorphous nature of issues like climate change. By creating processes for addressing the most impactful and controllable aspects first, even seemingly insurmountable challenges can be broken down into subtasks and topics, ultimately leading to success.
Sustainability Reporting, ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance), Climate Change, Carbon Emissions Accounting, Problem-Solving
Advizer Information
Name
Job Title
Company
Undergrad
Grad Programs
Majors
Industries
Job Functions
Traits
Casey Junod
Sr Manager Sustainability
Protiviti
San Jose State University
UCLA - Anderson
Environmental & Related Sciences
Climate, Environment, Sustainability & Waste Management
Consulting
LGBTQ
Video Highlights
1. Break down large, amorphous tasks into manageable projects: Approaching sustainability reporting and ESG can be overwhelming. Break down complex issues like climate change into smaller, actionable steps to identify opportunities for impact.
2. Prioritize based on impact and control: When addressing carbon emissions, focus on the areas with the 'biggest bucket' of emissions, the 'highest level of engagement', the 'highest level of operational control', and the 'highest probability to change'.
3. Tackle challenges step-by-step: Build processes and protocols to address the most impactful, important, and controllable aspects first, gradually moving towards more amorphous problems by breaking them into subtasks.
Transcript
What is one lesson you've learned that has proven significant in your career?
That's a tough question. A lesson that has proven significant in my career is to break tasks into projects.
Within corporate sustainability and reporting, especially with topics like climate change, it can feel like an amorphous problem. You wonder how to address it, where to begin, and how a company can start to green its operations.
I think it comes down to breaking down where the most opportunity for impact lies. For example, when calculating carbon emissions, you consider scopes one, two, and three.
Scope one is direct emissions like burning fossil fuels. Scope two is purchased electricity from the grid. Scope three is anything from your supply chain. Within that, you need to identify the biggest areas for engagement, operational control, and potential for change.
So, it's about taking a step-by-step approach rather than getting bogged down by the overwhelming nature of the problem. You have to build processes for tackling things in order of impact, importance, and controllability.
Even the more amorphous problems can be broken down into subtasks and subtopics. Ultimately, breaking things out is critical to success.
Advizer Personal Links
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/caseyjunod/