While many companies have developed robust sustainability strategies, a critical component often remains overlooked: employee upskilling.
Empowering employees with the necessary knowledge and skills is essential to effectively implement and drive sustainability initiatives.
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Understanding employee upskilling
Employee upskilling refers to the process of enhancing existing employees’ skills to meet evolving business needs. Unlike reskilling, which involves training employees for entirely new roles, upskilling focuses on improving current competencies.
In the context of sustainability, this means equipping employees with the knowledge and tools to integrate ESG principles into their daily operations. For instance, training staff on energy efficiency practices or sustainable supply chain management can significantly contribute to an organization’s environmental goals.
Why upskilling is the missing link in ESG strategies
Many ESG strategies focus primarily on compliance, risk management, and external reporting, functions often owned by leadership or specific departments; and while these are necessary components, they overlook a critical success factor: the people expected to implement them.
Without broad employee understanding, engagement, and motivation, ESG strategies often remain theoretical and disconnected from day-to-day operations. This is where upskilling becomes indispensable.
Equipping employees with sustainability-related knowledge and competencies enables them to contribute meaningfully at every level. Whether it’s understanding how their role influences carbon emissions, or applying diversity and inclusion practices in hiring, upskilled employees can turn ESG into real action.
Empower employees to contribute to the ESG strategy
Data consistently highlights this need with research showing that only a small percentage of employees are familiar with their company’s ESG commitments. According to a 2024 survey by EY and DoGood People, 85% of employees didn’t know their company’s ESG goals, and only 34% had basic sustainability knowledge.
Without foundational understanding, employees can’t be expected to contribute meaningfully. Bridging that gap requires investment in skills as well as belief in the transformative potential of the workforce.
What effective ESG-focused upskilling looks like
Not all upskilling programs are created equal, especially when it comes to sustainability and ESG. To truly embed ESG across an organization, upskilling must be designed with intention. Here are four essential characteristics to make ESG-focused training programs effective:
- Role-relevant: Content must be adapted to the realities of different departments and functions. For instance, logistics teams might focus on emissions reduction and efficiency, while HR learns about DEI and inclusive hiring.
Aligned: Training should reflect the organization’s specific ESG goals, whether it’s achieving net zero, improving transparency, or advancing employee well-being. Relevance builds buy-in.
Measurable: Effective upskilling goes beyond completion certificates. It includes KPIs such as knowledge retention, behavior change, and even operational improvements tied to sustainability goals.
Engaging: Traditional, one-size-fits-all courses often fail to inspire action. Instead, ESG upskilling works best when it’s interactive, practical, and available in flexible formats like microlearning, real-life challenges, or scenario-based learning.
Steps to implement effective ESG upskilling
Implementing a strong upskilling strategy doesn’t require reinventing the wheel, it requires a structured approach. Here’s a practical five-step roadmap to get started:
Assess current ESG awareness: Start by running internal surveys or knowledge audits to understand the baseline. Where are the blind spots?
Identify skill gaps: Map current job roles against your ESG goals to determine what skills are missing or underdeveloped.
Define clear learning objectives: These might include topics like carbon literacy, ethical sourcing, circular economy, or sustainability compliance.
Choose the right learning format: Depending on your workforce profile, training may be delivered through internal L&D teams, external partners, online platforms, or blended programs.
Track and measure real impact: Don’t stop at completion rates. Track application of knowledge, improvements in operations, or even shifts in internal behaviors.
Why culture is the real ESG multiplier
Policies don’t drive change, people do. For ESG strategies to succeed, they must be lived and understood by the people responsible for bringing them to life: your employees. Without this human layer, even the most well-intentioned sustainability plans risk becoming disconnected from operations and everyday decisions.
Upskilling is the lever that turns ESG from an isolated initiative into an organization-wide movement. It creates a shared language, a common understanding, and a sense of ownership across roles and departments.
Whether it’s a warehouse team learning how to reduce energy usage, or a procurement officer evaluating suppliers through a sustainability lens, informed employees make better, more responsible choices.
And that’s where the real transformation begins, when ESG becomes part of your culture, not just part of your reporting. Companies that invest in their people will not only meet compliance, they will build resilient, adaptive cultures that are prepared for the future.
