IÉSEG launches a new Master in Management for Sustainability

Programs

11/10/2021

Through its 2025 Vision, IÉSEG has given an essential place to Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and Sustainable Development (SD) in its strategy, its activities, its research and its programs. After having rethought the way CSR and SD are taught in all the programs, to provide a more transversal teaching approach emphasizing the business models and the transformation of organizations to implement them, IÉSEG now moves a step further to launch for the next academic year (September 2022) a new Specialized Master specifically dedicated to CSR and SD: the Master in Management for Sustainability.

This Master’s program is designed for purpose-driven students who are concerned about sustainable development issues and who wish to become managers capable of implementing solutions that meet the challenges of tomorrow in the professional world. Managing the full range of sustainability risks and challenges is top-of-mind for business leaders. This means making day-to-day decisions that, for example, ensure water quality, tackle climate change, advance green technology, engage with stakeholders, innovate for food and validate social compliance for fair labor practices.

The program does not require a strong science or technology background. Rather, the Master in Management for Sustainability teaches students to be able to make the important connections, for example, between the mitigation of climate change and investment in low-carbon technologies. Or, link water risk and natural resource stress to supply chain continuity and grasp stakeholder activism as a strategic imperative. Thus, it will equip students with the fundamental science, technology and policy know-how for meeting today’s organizations’ sustainability challenges.

This Master in Management for Sustainability is a perfect fit for all students interested in the civil society, NGOs or activist groups that need more and more professionals who can combine a solid business background with passion for environmental stewardship and social justice.

This program is also particularly adapted to all those who wish to work in auditing firms, asset management or corporate and investment banking. Indeed, certification, verification and compliance around Environmental, Social and Governance data has expanded significantly over the past five years, just as Sustainability, Green or Impact Investing.

Lastly, the Master in Management for Sustainability will train students who wish to work in any mainstream industry in a variety of positions, in Management (to advise and guide the strategic decision-making in a world where the need for sustainability continually imposes new and evolving challenges and opportunities to companies), Marketing and Advertising (to promote products with more sustainable attributes), Finance and Accounting (to capture carbon tax and trading impacts and pricing of water risk), Product Development (to identify new, more sustainable materials, alternative packaging or re-design to capture under-served markets) and many more.

“This program offers a unique blend of courses, aimed to become a changemaker addressing pressing sustainability challenges. Combining fundamental insights from sustainability science and policy with relevant know-how for meeting today’s businesses’ sustainability challenges, this program is set to prepare you to lead the change towards sustainability,” explains Frank DE BAKKER, Academic Director and Professor of Corporate Social Responsibility at IÉSEG.

The Master in Management for Sustainability is built around four pillars: Leading (with courses like Business Model Innovation, Leading and Governing a Sustainable Business, Political Economy of Sustainability), Understanding (e.g., Climate Change: Science and Policy, Decision-Making under Risk and Uncertainty, Environmental Problems and Human Behavior), Managing (e.g., Managing and Reporting for ESG, Managing Information and Data for Sustainability, Social Entrepreneurship and Intrapreneurship) and Partnering (e.g., Activism: Strategy and Tactics, Navigating the Institutional Environment or Organizing for the Circular Economy). And with journeys and hands-on experience through a 4-to 6-month internship or work experience, students will be fully equipped to respond to the challenges of today and tomorrow.

Maria CASTILLO, Head of Sustainability at IÉSEG, concludes: “Joining the Master in Management for Sustainability at IÉSEG is an excellent choice for leaders wanting to increase his/her knowledge and expertise on sustainability, to build his/ her sustainability skill set, and to actively address the most pressing social and environmental challenges business faces in the next decades.”