Member Story: Sarah Rial, Social Value Delivery Lead, Jacobs

What makes your sector unique from a CRS perspective?

I have worked across a wide variety of sectors, though a significant amount of my experience has been working in the built environment.

I think what makes this sector unique, and actually the reason I love what I do, is that the built environment has such a significant impact on people and the environment. A new school building not only impacts on a young persons education, but the look of the landscape and how the entire community connects. A railway not only presents an opportunity for greener travel but also provides a catalyst for growth, prosperity and enhancing wellbeing in the surrounding areas.

I love working with my organisation, clients and the supply chain to ensure we understand our impacts and make the best decisions to ensure these impacts are positive.

What do you need to do your job brilliantly?

Passion in the first instance. I think by speaking passionately about corporate responsibility and sustainability(CR&S), you bring others along with you. 

A commitment from leadership to CR&S is crucial, including advocacy at the very top of the organisation. This includes understanding that change takes investment, innovation, and the ability to take some risks. 

And finally, a strong team, with diverse experiences and backgrounds, with a willingness to support and learn from one another. I have learnt so much from my colleagues, peers, and teams over the years, and it’s helped me to progress the CR&S agenda by thinking about things from different perspectives. 

What are the most essential skills for working in CRS?

You need to be able to listen, empathise and engage people. These skills are paramount in any role in which you are trying to bring about change.

By listening, you can understand a person’s motivations, views and concerns. You need to put yourself in their shoes and understand how CR&S impacts them specifically. Once you understand them, you can start to engage them in a meaningful way, making sure your stakeholders feel part of the journey. For instance, understanding a Board Member may be concerned with the success of the business, you will want to engage them using messaging around risk, cost, benefits and return on investment. Alternatively working with a member of the community, they may want to deal less in hard data and statistics, and more around how they can be heard and involved. 

I think another key skill for any job is resilience. When you are trying to drive change in any organisation or sector, you can often feel disheartened by what feels like a lack of progress. But it’s always helpful to take pride in any progress made, regardless of the size or pace.

What advice would you give to others on getting into CR&S?

Don’t be afraid to use your unique background and skills to your advantage! We need diverse people, with different perspectives to challenge ourselves and our organisations. 

Also consider how your existing experience, regardless of how limited, sets you up to support the CR&S agenda. Focus on skills and experience in areas such as communication, engagement, problem solving, negotiation, and listening, not just technical skills. Technical experience is easier to acquire when you have good core skills.