Beckers Group Chief Sustainability Officer Nicklas Augustsson: 4 Things to Know

Paint, chemical manufacturing and coating company Beckers Group has promoted Nicklas Augustsson (pictured above) from global sustainability director to chief sustainability officer (CSO).

Here are four things to know about Augustsson's experience and expertise, and Beckers Group's sustainability strategy:

1. Business Scope and Scale: Beckers Group, founded in 1865, is a privately-owned global coatings company. The firm employs roughly 1,800 people across 24 production sites in 18 countries. The overall business serves customers in nearly 60 countries, Beckers Group says.

2. Sustainability Strategy: Beckers Group in 2020 launched a 2030 Sustainability Strategy -- which spans various people, products and operations goals. An associated sustainability performance dashboard for the company is here.

3. Nicklas Augustsson's Experience and Expertise: Augustsson joined the company in 2001 as a development engineer, and has held key positions in sales, research & development, and technical services. He shifted to global sustainability director in 2016, according to LinkedIn. Augustsson's achievements in that post, according to his LinkedIn account, included:

• Developing and implementing the company's global sustainability framework and 2030 strategy -- including KPIs and long-term goals covering social, environmental, and product related topics.
• Being responsible for sustainability integration, training, GRI & climate reporting for sites/units located in 18 countries across five continents.
• Managing the group sustainability department and charing the cross-functional and strategic Beckers’ Sustainability Council.

In his new post, Augustsson is a permanent member of the executive committee of Beckers Group, and he continues to report to Chief Technology Officer Gavin Bown.  

4. Executive Perspectives: In a prepared statement, CEO Christophe Sabas said: "Sustainability is a key ambition for Beckers and it supports our business strategy. In creating a Chief Sustainability Officer seat on the Executive Committee, we want to strengthen what we do to reach our 2030 sustainability targets. This is a strong message to our internal organization, and also to our customers and stakeholders, that Beckers is committed on sustainability."

Added Gavin Bown, chief technology officer of Beckers Group: “Nicklas has been instrumental in developing and driving the Group's sustainability strategy. His promotion to CSO reflects his outstanding ownership and leadership in both strategy and execution, and the high strategic importance of sustainability to Beckers.”

Beckers Chief Sustainability Officer: Why Technology Partners Should Care

By 2027, 25% of Global 2000 companies will have assigned a chief sustainability officer (CSO) responsible for meeting their organization’s ESG goals and making ESG-related IT purchasing decisions, according to IDC.

The bottom line: Technology partners need to extend their sales, marketing, engagement and support strategies to successfully fulfill those CSO customer needs, Sustainable Tech Partner believes.