What we do
End-to-end leadership advisory — from C-suite search to board placement, backed by India's only 12-month candidate guarantee.
Intelligence for the full CXO lifecycle — from silent market discovery to mandate-ready assessment, compensation truth, career forks, and CV depth.
Silent market intelligence and matched opportunities — no public footprint.
Self Assessment PortalMulti-layer psychometrics, archetypes, and mandate-ready fit intelligence.
Compensation IntelligenceP25–P90 benchmarks, negotiation playbooks, and scenario modelling.
Career Progression StudioSimulated paths, peer percentiles, and a 12-month readiness roadmap.
Resume Intelligence12-dimension scoring, JD fit, and AI positioning variants.
CXO platform
Whisper, Symphony, Compensation Intelligence, Compass, and Resume Intelligence share context — so your profile, comp view, and market briefings stay aligned.
Sector expertise
We place senior leaders across India's most dynamic sectors — from BFSI and technology to healthcare, manufacturing and beyond.
C-suite expertise
From CEO and CFO to CISO and ESG leader — we cover every C-suite function across India's private, listed and PE-backed organisations.
Gladwin International
& Company
Explore the Ancient Wisdom
ESG and sustainability have made the transition from corporate reporting obligation to genuine strategic priority — driven by investor activism, regulatory mandates, customer preference, and the undeniable reality of climate change. India's Business Responsibility and Sustainability Report (BRSR) requirements, the Securities and Exchange Board of India's (SEBI) ESG disclosure framework, and the growing integration of sustainability into lending and insurance decisions have all elevated the Chief Sustainability Officer to a critical senior leadership role.
Our ESG & Sustainability practice at Gladwin International Leadership Advisors places Chief Sustainability Officers, Heads of ESG, and Sustainability Directors across all sectors. We work with listed companies navigating BRSR compliance, multinational corporations integrating global ESG standards, PE-backed businesses responding to LP sustainability mandates, and impact-first organisations building sustainability into their core purpose.
This practice is genuinely multidisciplinary: sustainability leaders must combine technical knowledge (climate science, life cycle assessment, sustainability reporting standards) with strategic communication capability, stakeholder management skill, and the commercial acumen to make sustainability business-relevant rather than corporate charity.
The ESG role has evolved from a CSR and corporate philanthropy function to a strategic risk management and value creation mandate. The BRSR Core framework, TCFD alignment requirements, and Science-Based Targets (SBTi) commitments are all demanding sophisticated sustainability governance and reporting capability. The EU's Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) is creating mandatory ESG reporting obligations for Indian companies with European operations. Sustainable finance — green bonds, sustainability-linked loans, and ESG-integrated credit assessments — is creating demand for sustainability leaders who understand capital markets. And the social dimension of ESG (labour practices, supply chain human rights, community impact) is receiving increasing scrutiny from global investors and customers.
Our 14 years of placing ESG & Sustainability leaders has taught us exactly where searches go wrong. Here is what we watch for.
Guaranteed placement · 12-month candidate guarantee · Affordable pricing for organisations across the value chain.
For ESG & Sustainability Professionals
Built exclusively for senior ESG & Sustainability Leaders leaders. Five integrated modules that benchmark your profile, scan the market in silence, and surface the right opportunity — before it becomes public.
Research & Insights
Thought leadership on the ESG & Sustainability Leaders role — strategy, skills, and the future of the function in India.
From BRSR specialists to board-ready CSusOs, India's sustainability leadership pipeline requires deliberate development — here is the roadmap that works.
India's net-zero commitment and deepening ESG regulatory expectations are defining a new archetype of corporate sustainability leader — one who combines climate science, finance, and transformation leadership.
From real-time Scope 3 tracking to AI-driven energy optimisation in Indian factories, technology is making India's decarbonisation ambitions operationally achievable.
Common questions about recruiting a ESG & Sustainability Leaders in India.
The urgency around ESG and sustainability leadership in India has been driven by a convergence of forces: SEBI's Business Responsibility and Sustainability Reporting (BRSR) mandatory disclosure requirements for listed companies, global customer and investor ESG due diligence standards (particularly for Indian exporters to Europe and North America), access to green finance and sustainability-linked loans, and the rapidly growing pressure from institutional investors on listed company ESG performance. Companies that lack credible ESG leadership are increasingly disadvantaged in capital markets, customer relationships, and talent attraction.
The most effective CSOs combine deep sustainability domain expertise with strong business credibility and influence. They understand GHG accounting (Scope 1, 2, 3), ESG reporting frameworks (GRI, SASB, TCFD, BRSR), green supply chain management, and circular economy principles — and can translate these into business-relevant initiatives that improve both sustainability performance and commercial outcomes. The ability to embed sustainability into business strategy (not just manage reporting) and to engage board, investors, and external stakeholders credibly is what distinguishes an excellent CSO from a compliance-oriented one.
ESG leadership talent spans management consulting (sustainability practice leaders), NGOs and international organisations (programme directors with deep sustainability expertise), corporate ESG functions (sustainability heads from listed companies), and specialist advisory firms. Our search methodology maps all four communities, identifying candidates who combine technical sustainability credibility with the corporate leadership ability to drive change in complex organisations. We evaluate GHG inventory management experience, ESG reporting competency, stakeholder engagement track record, and the commercial ability to build the business case for sustainability investments.
We fill: Chief Sustainability Officer (CSO), VP Sustainability, Head of ESG, Head of Corporate Social Responsibility, Head of Climate Risk, Head of Green Finance, Head of Supply Chain Sustainability, Head of Circular Economy, Environmental Compliance Head, and Board Sustainability Committee Directors. We work across manufacturing, BFSI, energy, chemicals, consumer goods, and infrastructure companies where ESG is most material to business performance.
Chief Sustainability Officers at large listed companies in India typically earn ₹1.5–3.5 crore CTC. MNC India CSOs typically earn ₹2–4 crore given the international reporting complexity. VP and Head of Sustainability roles at major companies typically command ₹1–2.5 crore. For companies where the CSO has a significant P&L impact (green product revenue, carbon credits, green finance cost reduction), performance incentives can add meaningfully to base compensation. We provide current compensation benchmarks for every ESG and sustainability search.