What is sustainable management?

Thorir Hergeirsson, National Team Manager and coach of the Norwegian women's national handball team

Sustainable leadership is the ability to manage rapid change now and in the future, and to deal with the ups and downs, together with those you lead. At TAKE LEAD 2024, I wanted to share from our leadership practice in the national team. I talked about the importance of a holistic approach, about the individual and the team, goals, consequences and obligations, about leading oneself (that the individual is at the "wheel" on the journey towards the goal) and interaction/cooperation. It is healthy for all of us to reflect and be inspired on a regular basis. I therefore hope that each participant received input that they could take forward in their own leadership.

Sustainable leadership involves managing a business in a way that balances financial success with environmental and social responsibility while setting standards for partners. A sustainable leader is good at influencing, disseminating sustainability knowledge, innovation strategies and engaging leadership. All businesses and organizations will have to deal with new sustainability directives, laws and regulations going forward.

My talk was about what sustainable leadership entails and how leaders should think strategically, which areas of competence I believe will be crucial in the future and finally the importance of running self-development processes to become good at sustainable leadership. I wanted to help the participants leave with a clearer picture of what sustainable leadership entails, what it requires and how qualities and skills can be strengthened through self-development processes.

Carina Carl, Psychologist and author

I see sustainable leadership as authentic leadership - when you lead in line with your own values, vision and resources. "You know when you're on your right path when you're not (constantly) put in a position where you betray yourself". I wanted to convey the neuropsychological foundation of the value of presence - with the desire that listeners would be left with an experience of presence themselves. TAKE LEAD 2024 was a great arena for stimulating human encounters and professional inspiration.

For me, sustainable leadership is not only about leadership that will stand the test of time, but also about leading towards a more environmentally friendly society. Finding ways of working - and products and services to deliver - that together help to slow down climate change, preserve nature and prepare us for a changing climate.

I wanted the participants to be left with the impression that there is room for trial and error - and not least to steal good ideas from others - as long as leadership development is based on the real needs of the individual manager or the company as a whole. It's better to do something right and something wrong than to do nothing. I hope that the participants felt an impatience to get started after my talk. And preferably also a burning desire to make a difference for a more environmentally friendly society. A desire to save the world, quite simply.