Strategy

Let's jointly develop the sustainability strategy for your company (further).

Strategy

Let's jointly develop the sustainability strategy for your company (further).

What makes a sustainability strategy successful?

First things first: no one size fits all! A sustainability strategy is as individual as the company itself. That is why successful development begins with a precise but efficient examination of internal and external conditions. This includes regulatory requirements such as CSRD or ISO certifications, as well as stakeholder expectations from customers, suppliers, or investors. Equally important is taking stock of the status quo: what structures, goals and measures already exist?

A successful sustainability strategy must have a clear structure. It aligns with the key topics of the industry and follows relevant guidelines and frameworks. It is aligned with the core business, but goes beyond day-to-day operations – because it is intended to drive transformation. Relevant, measurable goals with clear indicators (KPIs) and milestones are central, and a defined time horizon provides direction. To achieve this, it is also necessary to involve all relevant departments, such as controlling, purchasing and communications – because sustainability must be developed and lived holistically.

At the same time, a strategy should be distinctive – not interchangeable. It should inspire and be easy to communicate. To do this, it is important to have concise and ambitious goals, strong visuals and a transformation story. Communicating authentically about progress, but also about challenges and failures, creates transparency and trust.

First things first: no one size fits all! A sustainability strategy is as individual as the company itself. That is why successful development begins with a precise but efficient examination of internal and external conditions. This includes regulatory requirements such as CSRD or ISO certifications, as well as stakeholder expectations of customers, suppliers or investors. Equally important is taking stock of the status quo: what structures, goals and measures already exist?

A successful sustainability strategy must have a clear structure. It is aligned with the central topics of the industry and takes into account relevant guidelines and frameworks. It is aligned with the core business, but goes beyond day-to-day business – because it is intended to drive transformation. Relevant, measurable goals with clear indicators (KPIs) and milestones are central, and a fixed time horizon provides orientation. To achieve this, it is also necessary to involve all relevant departments, such as controlling, purchasing and communication – because sustainability must be developed and lived holistically.

At the same time, a strategy should be individual – not interchangeable. It should motivate and be easy to communicate. To do this, it is important to have concise and ambitious goals, good visualization and a transformation story. Communicating authentically about progress, but also about challenges and failures, creates transparency and sympathy.

Overview of services

Analysis of your existing strategies and strategic approaches
Benchmarking with competitors and top transformers
(Further) development of your sustainability strategy
Operationalization of the sustainability strategy (measurable, scheduled targets and KPIs)
Implementation planning (measures, responsibilities, processes)
Agenda for strategic transformation in ESG and sustainability

Selected references

STEINBACH STRATEGIEN has already successfully developed or enhanced sustainability strategies with numerous companies. Selected projects can be found in the references.

Who needs a sustainability strategy?

In theory and in an ideal world, the sustainability strategy is the starting point for ESG management. Many standards – wheather ESRS in the context of CSRD reporting, the long-established GRI reporting, EcoVadis, The UN Global Compact and so on – all include the requirement of a “sustainability strategy”. As a strategist, Anke Steinbach is, of course also a strong advocate of sustainability strategies, climate strategies, responsible sourcing strategies and so on.

However, over 22 years of practical experience in sustainability consulting have consistently shown that the development of a true sustainability strategy typically only becomes a topic of conversation after several years of working with ESG and related issues.

This is because a sustainability strategy that lives up to its name and is used to manage the company’s most important ESG issues requires a solid foundation of data and clearly defined targets, a strong organizational integration, and a strategic view of sustainability that often only develops over time. We also often observe that early strategies tend to focus on measures rather than on clear goals.

Therefore let us distinguish between the “strategic approach” and the sustainability strategy: the strategic approach formulates key topics and fields of action, as well as general goals or visions of what you want to achieve, usually on a generic level, for example, reducing energy consumption, expanding sustainable products or improving social and environmental standards in the supply chain. A sustainability strategy, on the other hand, has measurable, scheduled and ambitious goals. In this way, it provides strategic guidelines for verifiable results and a roadmap for action.

Therefore, every company needs a sustainability strategy (at some point).

Anke Steinbach’s approach: start from where the company is and take it from there. For example, over 15 years ago, a number of large companies worked with STEINBACH STRATEGIES to define their strategic approach and over the years have developed it into a solid sustainability or ESG strategy. We have supported many companies in operationalizing their strategy. Incidentally, this can often be usefully incorporated into sustainability reporting projects! A possible first step? A review of the current sustainability strategy.

From practice: Sustainability strategy in sports

The professional soccer leagues in Germany have also committed themselves to sustainability. For some time now, the DFL Sustainability Guideline has provided an ambitious set of tasks for transformation in soccer. Some clubs are also already subject to CSRD reporting.

Over the last three years, Anke Steinbach has provided input on how a sustainability strategy can be set up and further developed, how this fits into the implementation of other requirements from the sustainability guidelines, and how all of this can be organized. The Center for Sustainability Management (CSM) at Leuphana University Lüneburg offers a certificate program to support sustainability managers and other leaders from soccer and a range of other sports.

Anke Steinbach, who herself completed her MBA in Sustainability Management at the CSM in 2007, has been associated with the institute and Leuphana for many years. Another reason why it is a matter of honor to support this sports certificate and all the sustainability multipliers with practical input from strategy development.

The German Football League (DFL) has developed a sustainability strategy

Steps to an ESG or sustainability strategy

Where do you currently stand? Do you already have a strategic approach or a sustainability strategy? Or perhaps an environmental strategy, climate strategy, responsible sourcing strategy or others are still floating around? Are different people responsible? An important first step is to explore the status quo and formulate what is to be achieved.

Operationalizing an existing sustainability strategy or clearly structuring various objectives can often be effectively achieved as part of an ESG reporting project. CSRD reporting requires a review and adjustment of the existing sustainability strategy and the formulation of a climate strategy in any case. With our extensive experience, STEINBACH STRATEGIEN can provide efficient and effective support as a sounding board here.

If a company wants to take its sustainability strategy to a new level – for example, by using a transformation roadmap or focusing on more sustainable products and innovations – other tasks are required. We are happy to prepare meaningful examples as inspiration, analyze the framework for the necessary transformation and discuss challenging issues. The best way to identify requirements and possibilities is to have an initial, non-binding discussion.

Analysis, benchmarking or (further) development of the strategy – what do you need?

What clients say

I've been working with Anke Steinbach on various projects since 2011 and, despite the fast-paced environment in our company and at STEINBACH STRATEGIEN, I've always been able to count on her to deliver outstanding results and the highest level of commitment. She has played a key role advancing the DMK Group’s sustainability efforts with her professional expertise, stamina and Sharp focus on what truly matters Anke is a pleasure to work with.

- Dr. Phillip Inderhees – Head of Corporate Strategy, DMK Group

In 2022, we began working with STEINBACH STRATEGIEN to lay the foundation for our first sustainability report. Since then, further successful projects have been added. We value the collaboration very highly because it is marked by mutual trust and collaboration. The professional support contributes significantly to our success – and we are trulygrateful to have such a dedicated partner at our side!

- Ludger Ecke – Deputy Director of Quality and Sustainability Management / UMB, STULZ

STEINBACH STRATEGIEN has been instrumental in setting up and expanding our sustainability management. From creating our first sustainability report to developing a comprehensive sustainability strategy, our collaboration with STEINBACH STRATEGIEN has been marked by trust and professionalism. We particularly appreciate the excellent preparation of important content and the constructive dialogue. Both have helped us to stay focused on what truly matters. This has set the stage for making sustainability a company-wide focus.

- Thomas Wissing de Freitas – Sustainability Manager, Schmitz Cargobull

We thank STEINBACH STRATEGIEN for the professional support in preparing our 2022/2023 sustainability report and for assisting with a wide range of communication initiative. An internal sustainability workshop also helped our company divisions deepen their understanding and actively contribute to the further development of our sustainability strategy. We greatly appreciate Anke Steinbach's professional and dedicated approach and look forward to continuing our collaboration.

- Nina Siegel – Corporate Social Responsibility Manager, Zentis

We worked with Anke Steinbach on the preparation of sustainability reports in accordance with the GRI standards. Thanks to her strong customer focus and technical precision, our joint projects were always highly efficient and met our clients’ expectations in full.

- Frank Schroedter – Management, Engel & Zimmermann

Stronger together: The team

Anke Steinbach has been an independent sustainability consultant for over 22 years. She has a background in economics and an MBA in sustainability management and worked at McKinsey for several years. She works with selected consultants, sustainability specialists and agencies in a network on a project-by-project basis. Get to know some of them.

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