At Sage, we’re building a more sustainable future for small and mid-sized businesses worldwide. We’re now looking for a Sustainability Reporting Director to lead our global non-financial reporting strategy and help shape how Sage is seen, trusted, and understood by regulators, investors, customers, and society.
This is a senior leadership role at the heart of Sage’s sustainability and net zero ambitions, with direct exposure to Executive Leadership Team and Board-level stakeholders.
The Role
You will own the design and delivery of Sage’s multi-year sustainability disclosure strategy, ensuring our reporting meets evolving global standards, regulatory requirements, and stakeholder expectations.
You will lead the end-to-end delivery of Sage’s non-financial disclosures - from data governance and regulatory horizon scanning to content development, assurance, and board engagement. Acting as a trusted advisor, you will bring clarity, technical depth, and leadership to a fast-evolving and strategically critical area of the business.
You’ll also play a key role in preparing Sage’s disclosures for an AI-enabled future, ensuring they are machine-readable, credible, and ready to be interpreted by large language models (LLMs).
This is a hybrid role that will work in the office 3 days a week and 2 from home.
Lead Sage’s sustainability disclosure strategy
• Design and execute a pragmatic, forward-looking sustainability reporting roadmap.
• Monitor and interpret evolving global regulations and standards ( ISSB, CSRD).
• Lead regulatory horizon scanning and engagement with external stakeholders.
• Socialise and align disclosure strategy changes with senior governance forums.
Deliver best-in-class sustainability reporting
• Own the delivery of Sage’s annual sustainability reporting suite, including:
- Non-Financial Statement
- Impact Book
- Pay Gap reports
- Sustainability content for the Annual Report & Accounts and website
• Lead cross-functional data gathering and content development.
• Ensure robust legal verification, audit readiness, and pre-assurance processes.
• Manage relationships with external partners (creative agencies, auditors, advisors).
Strengthen data, governance, and controls
• Champion high-quality, consistent, and transparent ESG data.
• Enhance data collection and monitoring processes, including tooling and automation.
• Oversee internal controls related to impacts, risks, and opportunities (IROs).
• Partner closely with Risk, Finance, Legal, and Internal Audit teams.
Board, ELT, and investor engagement
• Draft and present reporting and regulatory papers for the Audit & Risk Committee and Board.
• Support VP and EVP Sustainability in shareholder and investor ESG engagements.
• Advance sustainability literacy and accountability at ELT and Board level.
Materiality, insight, and continuous improvement
• Lead regular updates to Sage’s materiality assessment using best-in-class practices.
• Establish an ESG horizon scanning and monitoring capability.
• Act as Sage’s technical expert on sustainability reporting and assurance.
AI-ready reporting
• Ensure disclosures are machine-readable and aligned with AI requirements.
• Develop and execute an AI-enabled reporting roadmap.
• Identify skills gaps and drive knowledge-sharing across the business.
• Deliver measurable efficiency and quality improvements.
Policy and public affairs engagement
• Work closely with Public Affairs to engage with the UK Government, EU institutions, and OECD.
• Lead on consultations and advocacy for simplified reporting standards for SMEs.
Leadership
• Sit on Sage’s Sustainability Leadership Team.
• Lead and develop a small, international sustainability reporting team.
What We’re Looking For
• Essential experience
• Deep expertise in sustainability reporting frameworks, including GRI, SASB, and CDP.
• Strong understanding of ESG regulatory and legislative processes.
• Proven track record in senior sustainability or environmental leadership roles within complex, global organisations.
• Extensive experience delivering high-quality sustainability disclosures.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to influence at all levels.
• Strong leadership skills, with the ability to inspire beyond direct reporting lines.
• High level of data literacy, analytical capability, and attention to detail.
• Clear business acumen, linking ESG strategy to commercial priorities.
• Active membership of a relevant professional body or evidence of ongoing professional development.
Preferred
• Bachelor’s degree in environmental science or a related field.
• Postgraduate qualification preferred.
Your benefits (Only Applicable for UK Based Roles)
Benefits video –
• Generous bonuses and pension scheme: Up to 8% matched pension contribution plus 2% top-up by Sage.
• 25 days of paid annual leave with the option to buy up to another 5 days
• Paid 5 days yearly to volunteer through our Sage Foundation
• Enhanced parental leave
• Comprehensive health, dental, and vision coverage
• Work away scheme for up to 10 weeks a year
• Access to various helpful memberships for finances, health and wellbeing
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