CHEP, a Brambles company, has hired Sandra Elizabeth Leyva Martinez as head sustainability for the Americas, she confirmed via LinkedIn. Here are four things to know about the business and Leyva Martinez's executive experience.
1. Business Scope and Scale: CHEP, acquired by Brambles from the Australian government in 1958, specializes in wooden and plastic pallets, small display pallets, crates and IBC containers -- which are critical to supply chains worldwide. Indeed, CHEP manages, maintains, transports and supplies 330 million pallets and containers -- which are shared and reused by growers, manufacturers, distributors and retailers worldwide.
2. Sustainability Goals: Brambles, the parent company of CHEP, is striving to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2040. Near-term goals include:
- 100% renewable electricity and carbon neutrality from operations by 2025;
- 42% reduction in Scope 1 and 2 and 17% reduction in Scope 3 emissions by 2030, compared to fiscal-year 2020 levels.
3. Executive Experience: Leyva Martinez previously was director of supply chain sustainability at KION Group. Earlier, she was a product management leader for worldwide sustainability and supply chain innovation at Amazon. Moreover, Leyva Martinez was senior sustainability manager at Dematic.
4. Executive Perspectives: In a statement posted on LinkedIn during January 2025, Leyva Martinez wrote: "I'm BEYOND excited to announce that I'm taking on a role that feels tailor-made for me: Head of Sustainability for the Americas at CHEP, a Brambles company. Brambles was just ranked #4 on TIME Magazine's inaugural list of the World's Most Sustainable Companies 2024!
I'm genuinely proud to share this because CHEP isn't your average company. They have built one of the world's most extensive and efficient circular logistics networks, managing over 347 million reusable pallets, crates, and containers across 60 countries‼️So, when our customers reduce waste and reuse resources, WE GROW. Incredible, right?"
She went on to thank multiple sources and team members for the opportunity, stating in part: "I'm ready to roll up my sleeves, collaborate with an INCREDIBLE team, and demonstrate what true environmental leadership looks like in the corporate world."
Chief Sustainability Officers: 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.
