Luxembourg Sustainability Management Series

These training sessions aim to introduce participants to the major issues of sustainable development and their concrete application in a company's strategy. These 11 modules are based on the intervention of specialised professionals, who will share their expertise with the attendees. Indeed, each session is introduced by a lead speaker who will present the theme and its challenges. He will then be joined by a second spokesperson animating a case study. The plurality of the speakers will allow the participants to acquire theoretical knowledge but also to benefit from field experiences.

At the end of this training, participants will be able to identify the development opportunities emerging from the integration of ESG criteria into a global strategy and the resulting growth opportunities.

Module 1: Define and publish a purpose that is compatible with sustainable development

Content:

• The societal and regulatory context surrounding the concept of purpose/ "Raison d'Etre"
• Clarification about the scope of the purpose
• Implications of the purpose in terms of governance and management
• Effective methods in order to develop and deploy the "raison d'être" for a company

Case study from a Luxembourg company

Module 2: Integrate environmental, social and governance (ESG) into the corporate strategy and business model

Content:

• Presentation of the different notions (ESG / CSR / Sustainability) and their importance for companies through practical cases
• Identification of the challenges, rules and new business models driven by CSR / ESG
• The creating of values and the reduction of risks thanks to sustainability
• How to integrate sustainability into a global strategy
• How to establish a global diagnosis through existing tools: life cycle analysis, carbon footprint, sustainable development goals, ISO 26000 standards, social impacts…
• Prioritising issues by integrating stakeholders and using the materiality matrix

Case study from a Luxembourg company

Module 3: Reinforce corporate governance to ensure that ESG criteria are factored into corporate strategy and navigate its progress

Content:

• Adopting good mechanisms of governance (ex. advisory board with experts; stakeholders committee; employees as administrators for boards)
• Definition of Sustainable KPIs and their communication to the board, committee, and to external third parties
• Definition of stakeholders committee (linked between society and the company)
• Structure of a road-map to help boards of directors develop a CSR Governance framework or methodology, including suggested terms of reference for a CSR Committee

Case study from a Luxembourg company

Module 4: Assess the company’s performance through both financial and non-financial indicators

Content:

• Introduction to extra-financial performance reporting and its purposes
• Reporting standards: contributions and complementarities (GRI, IR, SASB...)
• Performance management: How to form the operational manager to the decision-making of the CODIR / COMEX / Board committees and influence its strategy (difference between KPIs and indicators)
• Reporting project fundamentals (key milestones, roles and responsibilities, retro-planning, reporting tools, internal /external audit)
• Good practices (SBF 120, CAC 40 companies)

Case study from a Luxembourg company

Module 5a: Innovate and invest responsibly to develop growth opportunities for Corporates

Content:

• Know the economic models allowing the marketing and operation of products or services adapted to the needs of nowadays
• Deploy an eco-innovation approach in all departments of a company (design offices, human resources, purchasing, etc.)
• Manage projects and support change within the company by integrating the constraints linked to the evolution of legislation, regulations, and customer needs in B to B as in B to C
• How to enhance internally and externally the procedures put in place to make them a lever of differentiation in increasingly competitive markets
• Know and master the tools for identifying design levers to improve the environmental profile of a product, good or service

Case study from a Luxembourg company

Module 5b: Innovate and invest responsibly to develop growth opportunities for Banks and Insurances

Content:

• Notions: ESG, Green bonds, Social bonds, exclusions, Climate risks and impact investing
• Compliance with new European regulations (Taxonomy, CSRD, SFDR…etc.)
• Understand SFDR ‘s classification of funds (article 8 or 9)
• Technology for more Sustainability: Blockchain, Big Data, Analytics, IoT

Case study from a Luxembourg company

Module 6: Drive value creation for all stakeholders

Content:

• Definition of value(s) creation
• The development of a shared value strategy
• How to strengthen a company’s competitive advantage
• Discover creative ways to drive positive change

Case study from a Luxembourg company

Module 7: Contribute to the decarbonisation of the economy by developing a net zero emissions trajectory

Content:

• Climate change issues and climate adaptation
• The impact and dependencies of climate change on society, the global economy, and business
• The need of decarbonisation: net zero world objective and the resulting creation of opportunities
• Scope 1,2,3 and carbon footprint: How to measure and avoid greenwashing?
• Carbon reduction approach (energy efficiency, net zero approach, …)
• Regulations and policy support (carbon taxation)

Case study from a Luxembourg company

Module 8: Embed the circular economy principle in the business model

Content:

• The interconnection between Circular Economy and its potential in implementing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development
• The importance of systems-based approaches to identify effective circular transformations and apply different models of circularity to identify opportunities for circular transformations
• The opportunities to drive circular value across the life cycles of products and processes and examine business models that could support circularity
• The policy environments that support the successful application of circular strategies to cities and examine why citizens can play a crucial role in ensuring circularity
• The potential of individual actions and sustainable lifestyles in enabling circularity
• The barriers and enablers to mainstreaming circular strategies

Case study from a Luxembourg company

Module 9: Perform due diligence on human rights and environmental impacts throughout the value chain of the company

Content:

• The new duty of vigilance regulations
• The different risks and opportunities linked to ESG (human rights, environment, governance…)
• How to strengthen dialogue with stakeholders
• How to implement a vigilance plan and manage risks

Case study from a Luxembourg company

Module 10: Include and position employee stakeholders in the sustainable development process and foster their engagement

Content:

• The creation of a strong and relevant link between business goals and sustainability efforts
• Sustainability as an integrated discipline across an organisation and its business functions
• Applying change management skills for putting sustainability into the heart of business strategy and organisational culture
• How to build a concrete action plan for a company in order to can with sustainability in a structured, systematic and business strategic way

Case study from a Luxembourg company

At the end of the course, participants will receive a certificate of attendance issued by the House of Training