Leading for sustainability: implementing the tasks of leadership

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to expand the field of sustainability/corporate social responsibility research to include a focus on leadership. It aims to present an exploratory study of senior leaders in organizations formally adopting principles of sustainability and how these leaders enact the tasks of leadership: setting direction, creating alignment, and maintaining commitment within the context of sustainability.

Design/methodology/approach

The study uses a qualitative approach, sampling senior executives from organizations formally adopting sustainability practices and using a structured interview to uncover their leadership practices related to sustainability.

Findings

Leaders adopting sustainability practices are similar to other “effective” leaders and yet they also have additional capacity and mindset to include a wider expanse of stakeholders and a different mindset as to the purpose of organizations.

Research limitations/implications

Limited sample of senior executives/CEOs, as well as a difficulty in attesting an organization's level of commitment to sustainability; this research links the field of leadership to the field of sustainability and calls for a more in‐depth investigation into the roles leaders and leadership play in the successful implementation of sustainability practices.

Originality/value

Leaders interested in pursuing a sustainability agenda should pay attention to how the concept is framed and introduced into the organization; they should build capacity in their systems (educational, communication, rewards, performance, etc.) and culture to support sustainability, and broad and deep stakeholders engagement is essential for success.

Citation

Quinn, L. and Dalton, M. (2009), "Leading for sustainability: implementing the tasks of leadership", Corporate Governance, Vol. 9 No. 1, pp. 21-38. https://doi.org/10.1108/14720700910936038