Biggest Challenges Faced by a Senior Manager of Sustainability at a Global Events Company
Karen's biggest challenge as Senior Manager of Sustainability is the constant flux of the field, with new regulations appearing daily requiring a rapid response from a large organization where "it's really hard to move quickly". This necessitates a difficult balancing act between urgent action and the necessary deliberation of impacting "massive amounts of people and workloads".
Project Management, Problem-Solving, Overcoming Challenges, Executive/Leadership, Industry Realities
Advizer Information
Name
Job Title
Company
Undergrad
Grad Programs
Majors
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Traits
Karen Young
Senior Manager of Sustainability
Global Events Company
Texas State University
n/a
Film, Media Arts, Visual Arts
Consulting & Related Professional Services
Climate, Environment and Sustainability
Honors Student, Worked 20+ Hours in School
Video Highlights
1. Balancing speed and thoroughness in a large organization.
2. The constantly evolving nature of sustainability regulations and the need for continuous learning.
3. The challenge of prioritizing tasks effectively amidst competing demands and emergent issues.
Transcript
What is your biggest challenge in your current role as Senior Manager of Sustainability?
Sustainability is constantly changing, and there's an expectation that everyone is either trying to act first or in time for regulations that can appear suddenly. This creates a sense of urgency.
However, when working with a large organization, it's difficult to move quickly. The suggestions you propose impact many people, workloads, and daily routines.
So, you find yourself trying to rush, only to immediately have to slow down and wait. While you're waiting, other priorities can emerge. It's challenging to stay on top of everything.
New regulations arise daily. Unless you know where to find them, it's easy to miss them, which can become a liability. It's a lot of waiting while you're trying to hurry.