Sustainability and Corporate Social Responsibility roles were traditionally filled by bright young things with shiny hair, clean fleeces and extraordinary niceness, but over the years I’ve noticed a distinct toughening up of the profession – several of my clients and industrial contacts are ex-military and a number of others talk as if they should have been!

So what’s changed? Frankly, as Chuck Norris might say, if you are going to make an omelette, you gotta break a few eggs. Are you tough enough to:

• Ditch a loyal supplier because their sustainability performance isn’t up to scratch?
• Lose a director because ‘they don’t get it’?
• Kill off profitable product lines because they conflict with sustainability?

These are the questions where idealism meets harsh reality – and where others will expect you to show leadership. Sustainability is not just about partnership, mindfulness and worrying about the polar bear – sometimes you have to kick ass.

Photo © Alan Knight and used under Creative Commons Licence