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Environmental and Sustainability Recruitment
Build capability across ESG, sustainability and environmental management
Environmental and Sustainability recruitment designed to strengthen your ESG performance, reduce risk and help your organisation meet growing regulatory and stakeholder expectations. We connect you with professionals who drive meaningful change, not surface level initiatives.
The Growing Pressure on Businesses to Deliver Real Change
The expectations around environmental performance and sustainability have increased at a rapid pace. Customers, investors, employees and regulators now expect tangible progress, not marketing statements. Many organisations feel the pressure to reduce carbon emissions, manage environmental impact, meet supply chain requirements and prepare for future legislation.
This pressure creates a challenge for employers. Internal teams often feel overstretched, while senior leaders want measurable progress that aligns with commercial goals. The gap between ambition and capability becomes clearer each year, and many organisations struggle to turn strategy into action.
This is where the right Environmental or Sustainability professional makes a significant difference.
Why Recruitment Is Central
to Your ESG Success
Policies, frameworks and strategies only work when the right people sit behind them. Real environmental and sustainability progress depends on individuals who can influence behaviour, manage change and communicate with clarity.
The best professionals balance environmental priorities with commercial realities. They understand risk, compliance and reporting, but they also know how to build relationships and guide operational teams through the practical side of improvement.
Bringing in the right hire lifts the entire organisation. It improves reporting accuracy, enhances credibility with stakeholders, strengthens tender submissions, reduces operational impact and helps leaders make informed decisions.
We help you recruit the person who creates this progress.
What High-Performing ESG Professionals Have in Common
They are able to:
• Translate complex environmental and ESG requirements into simple actions
• Influence senior leaders and operational teams
• Build clear and credible pathways to Net Zero
• Strengthen environmental compliance and risk controls
• Improve data quality and reporting accuracy
• Lead sustainability initiatives that engage the workforce
• Manage auditors, regulators and stakeholders with confidence
• Balance ambition with realistic, measurable progress
These traits create momentum and long-term cultural change.
Why Employers Choose Search² for Environmental and Sustainability Hiring
Specialist knowledge of the sector
We understand environmental legislation, ISO 14001, Net Zero pathways, ESG reporting frameworks and the pressures that organisations face when trying to deliver credible progress.
A strong network of professionals
Our candidates include Environmental Advisors, Sustainability Managers, ESG Analysts, Net Zero leads and senior HSE professionals who can drive environmental improvement across your business.
Practical, culture-led approach
We focus on communication, influence and delivery. Not every technically strong candidate can create change. We help you find people who can.
Real business outcomes
Hiring the right person helps you reduce risk, win tenders, improve stakeholder confidence and prepare for future legislation. Environmental performance supports your commercial goals.
Services
Search² provides three core recruitment services that support every stage of HSEQ, Safety, Environment, Quality, ESG, Fire, CDM and Risk hiring. From Executive Search for senior leaders, to permanent team growth and rapid deployment of interim specialists, our approach is structured, specialist and built around your organisation’s needs.
In addition to recruitment, we offer consultancy services that help organisations make better decisions. This includes role benchmarking, shaping and defining new positions, out-placement support during redundancy programmes, complimentary salary benchmarking, and detailed job advert audits with optimisation recommendations.
Whether you need to hire, plan, restructure or improve your approach to attracting talent, Search² provides a complete and credible partnership for HSEQ teams.
Executive Search
Specialist search for senior HSEQ, Safety, Environment, Quality, ESG and Risk leaders. We map the market, engage passive talent and deliver high calibre shortlists for Head of, Director and strategic leadership roles.
Permanent Recruitment
Structured, targeted recruitment for mid level to senior permanent HSEQ, Safety, Environment, Quality and Risk positions. Shortlists of three to five pre screened candidates delivered quickly and accurately.
Contract & Interim Recruitment
Our Recruitment Process
FAQs - Environment & Sustainability Recruitment
1. What does an Environmental or Sustainability recruitment specialist do? A specialist recruiter sources, screens and introduces professionals for Environmental, Sustainability, ESG and Net Zero roles. This includes positions such as Environmental Advisor, Sustainability Manager, ESG Analyst and Head of Sustainability. We assess technical capability, sector experience, behavioural fit and motivation before presenting candidates. 2. What qualifications should an Environmental or Sustainability professional have? Common qualifications include IEMA Foundation Certificate, IEMA Practitioner, IEMA Chartered Environmentalist (CEnv), Masters degrees in Environmental Management, NEBOSH Environmental, ESG and sustainability reporting accreditations and ISO 14001 auditing experience. Requirements vary depending on role and sector. 3. What sectors do you recruit Environmental and Sustainability specialists for? We recruit across construction, manufacturing, engineering, utilities, renewable energy, housing, infrastructure, consultancy, facilities management and corporate ESG teams. Each industry has different regulatory and reporting requirements, so we tailor our search accordingly. 4. What roles do you recruit within Environment, Sustainability and ESG? Typical roles include: Environmental Advisor / Environmental Manager Sustainability Advisor / Sustainability Manager ESG Analyst / ESG Manager Head of Sustainability / Head of Environment Net Zero Manager Environmental Compliance Officer ISO 14001 / 50001 Specialists Carbon Reduction or Energy Management roles 5. How long does it take to hire an Environmental or Sustainability professional? Most permanent roles take 3 to 6 weeks, depending on seniority and interview stages. For urgent or project-based needs, interim specialists can often be introduced within 24–72 hours. 6. What experience should an Environmental professional have? This depends on the industry, but employers often look for: ISO 14001 / 50001 knowledge Environmental permits and compliance experience Impact assessments Waste, water and pollution management Carbon reduction or Net Zero projects ESG reporting and sustainability strategies 7. Do you recruit interim or contract Environmental and Sustainability specialists? Yes. We provide interim support for projects, seasonal workload, sudden gaps in teams, audits, compliance work, Net Zero planning, or maternity and sickness cover. Interim specialists are vetted, reference-checked and available at short notice. 8. What is the typical salary for Environmental and Sustainability roles in the UK? Salaries vary widely based on industry, location and seniority. Typical ranges include: Environmental Advisors: £35,000–£50,000 Sustainability Advisors: £38,000–£55,000 Environmental or Sustainability Managers: £50,000–£70,000 ESG Managers or Heads of Sustainability: £70,000–£100,000+ We provide complimentary salary benchmarking for employers. 9. How do you assess candidates before presenting them? We assess technical skills, sector knowledge, behavioural fit, motivation, experience with relevant legislation and standards, communication style, career goals, right to work, qualifications and counter-offer risk. Only candidates meeting the agreed criteria are shortlisted. 10. Do you help candidates as well as employers? Yes. We support Environmental and Sustainability professionals with career advice, CV guidance, interview preparation, market insights and introductions to opportunities that match their skills and long-term goals.