The role of leadership in reaching sustainable development goals among start-ups

Abstract: The world is facing a significant depletion of resources. By 2030, our demand will require more than double the resources we are consuming at the moment.  Sustainability is a way of safeguarding that our choices will not negatively impact future generation’s lives due to inadequate resource management. The main problem is that the authorities and the business world do not regard sustainability as a strategic-first business function, rather a collection of disparate solutions. The most crucial question in the discussion about sustainability is how designers, architects, engineers, creators of things, empower the new generations to live in a world of abundance (McDonough & Braungart 2008). It is up to every one of us to build a world that we want to inhabit. Although studies on sustainable innovation practices in large organizations have been located (Bro-Browers, 2010), there is limited academic literature on sustainability in start-ups.  The present thesis aims to show how leadership plays a central role in implementing the sustainability agenda and what traits and styles the CEOs of sustainable start-ups have to possess to drive organizations to success. In this case, success has been defined as the rate of investment attracted by the organization, participation in incubator and accelerator programs, prizes, and all the activities that advance the sustainability agenda.  In order to achieve the research purpose of this study, I conducted a critical literature review of the major leadership theories in the field, coupled with a qualitative research study involving semi-structured interviews administered to ten CEOs of start-ups that develop sustainable services or products. The results were conclusive. CEOs of successful sustainable start-ups displayed the following characteristics: visionary, empowering, tech-savvy, open, acting as coaches and mentors for their organizations, enablers of change, and problem-solvers par excellence. Compared to regular start-ups, the CEOs of sustainable start-ups want to positively impact the world by establishing systems that support the eradication of destructive practices. The business world could use this study’s results as a guide for start-ups and companies that activate in the field of sustainable innovation. Furthermore, it enriches the existing speciality literature since there is little written on leadership in sustainable start-ups.