Chief Sustainability Officer

Our client offers the opportunity to join a leading international group, renowned for its financial strength, strategic vision, and operational excellence. This role provides exceptional exposure to senior leadership and the opportunity to drive high-impact initiatives within a global, dynamic environment focused on creating sustainable value.The organisation combines a high-performance culture with a strong commitment to talent development, offering a collaborative, flexible, and international setting where individuals can make a meaningful impact and play a key role in shaping the future of the business.If this opportunity aligns with your skills and experience, we encourage you to apply.

As Chief Sustainability Officer, you will lead the Group's sustainability strategy, driving the integration of ESG principles across all business areas and ensuring alignment with corporate objectives. You will serve as a key sustainability advisor to senior leadership, with direct exposure to the Executive Committee and Board of Directors.

• Sustainability Strategy and Governance: Support the GEC and the Board of Directors (BoD) in identifying and assessing the material sustainability issues, impacts, risks and opportunities, as well as in the further development of the sustainability strategy, the sustainability targets and the sustainability policy.
• Sustainability Implementation and Integration: Actively manage and coordinate the implementation of the sustainability strategy to achieve the Group's sustainability goals and targets, and support the Market Units in integrating sustainability management into the core business (sustainability integration).
• Sustainability Monitoring and Reporting: Monitor the implementation of the sustainability strategy by the Market Units and the corporate functions, assess their performance in sustainability management and prepare sustainability reporting for the attention of the Group Sustainability Committee (GSC), GEC and BoD.
• Sustainability Communication and Stakeholder Engagement: Support the systematic, fact-based and dialogue-oriented communication of sustainability issues, seeking a balance of interests in all sustainability matters. This is done on the basis of consultations in the respective Group divisions, business units and Group companies, as well as through corresponding recommendations and motions for the attention of the GSC.
• Sustainability Reporting and Stakeholder Communication: Take ownership of the content of internal and external stakeholder communication on sustainability issues, including the preparation of the Sustainability Report.
• Philanthropy and Social Responsibility Coordination: Coordinate Group-wide philanthropic and social responsibility initiatives in collaboration with the company's corporate foundation.

• Leading international insurance group with a strong presence across Europe.
• Global executive role leading the Group's ESG strategy.

A successful Chief Sustainability Officer should have:

• Master's Degree, preferably in Sustainability, Environmental Science, Economics or a related field.
• 5+ years of experience in sustainability, with a proven track record of strategy development, implementation and performance monitoring.
• Experience advising senior governance bodies (Executive Committee, Board of Directors or equivalent) on sustainability strategy and reporting
• Fluent English is mandatory. German or additional languages would be considered an advantage
• Ability to advise and influence at GEC and Board level, translating complex sustainability topics into decision-ready recommendations and motions.
• Strong stakeholder management across Group divisions, business units and Group companies, with the ability to balance competing interests.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with experience in systematic, fact-based and dialogue-oriented stakeholder communication.
• Ability to coordinate Group-wide initiatives across market units and corporate functions without direct reporting lines.
• Structured and analytical approach to target setting, performance assessment and reporting.
• Collaborative mindset, acting as a strategic competence centre and trusted advisor to the business.
• Strong understanding of sustainability frameworks and policies.
• Sound knowledge of sustainability reporting standards (e.g. CSRD/ESRS, GRI, ISSB)
• Command of sustainability goal and target setting methodologies.
• Experience in materiality assessment covering sustainability issues, impacts, risks and opportunities.
• Familiarity with the integration of sustainability into the core insurance business and with operational risk management frameworks.