The Future of Sustainable Careers

Green Media News sat down with Matt Churchward, CEO & Head of Search at Net Zero Search, to learn about the future of sustainable careers.

Matt, thank you for being here. Tell us a little bit about you and your background:

I have 20+ years in recruitment and search, 13 of which in the Green / Net Zero space. I founded and exited one of the largest international recruiters in the sector and have recently founded a sector specialist search firm dedicated to delivering the top 1% talent into key leadership positions.

What would you do with $1 Billion dollars?

I would like to say total altruism but in reality probably a mix of ensuring my immediate family are set up for life, retro fit our house to Passivhaus standards, a year exploring the world & ticking off bucket list items. Work wise I would love to set up a vehicle for investing into Net Zero focused start ups.

Why do you think sustainability is such an important topic today?

When I look back to 2010 when we founded our first business it felt as though Sustainability was a buzz word, a nice to have. However, fast forward to today and it is a MUST have. I think that is down to education, policy and economics. Sustainability is part of my son’s school curriculum. He is 8, so this highlights how the next generation (s) will be very aware and active around Sustainability.

We will be held to account. With the ticking clock to 2050 and the recent energy crisis governments have realized it is now an essential party of policy rather than tokenism and green washing. Finally I would say pure economics. The sector feels like a gold rush, reduced manufacturing costs, government policy & incentives and strong margins have made the sector incredibly attractive to VC and PE. With other sectors under performing in he current macro-economic climate it is a perfect storm.

What do you envision your industry looking like 10 years from now?

The recruitment industry goes as the sectors we work with go. I would expect a normalization of growth rates in traditional renewable generation, energy storage, energy efficiency etc as they transition into being mainstream sectors. I would still expect significant ongoing growth in CleanTech and areas such as Green Hydrogen. I think Tech / IT skill sets will be in much greater demand in comparison to say commercial skill sets. Once development starts to slow businesses will be focusing much more on optimizing their assets and using technology to generate efficiencies.

What can the average person do to make a difference?

There is the perfect world vs reality. In reality for the average person sustainability will not sit atop their daily concerns. A common argument I hear is pointing out the consumption and environmental issues with BRIC nations. i.e. when that is happening what difference will it make what bin I put my cardboard in. I would say this is a lazy assumption and not an excuse.

For most people I would say some small incremental changes in their own daily household, their routines and buying habits can actually make a huge difference when extrapolated across a country. If you are too far gone to make any changes yourself then drive positive behaviours in the next generation in your household so it becomes the norm for them.

Matt, thank you for sharing your vision for the future of sustainable careers.