Creating Sustainable Strategies that deliver Positive performance
As Featured In:
Discover how to Stay Ahead
Who it’s for
Executive Leadership Teams (Boards, CEOs, CFOs, COOs, CSOs) leading a major sustainability transition initiative, who are under pressure to deliver a measurable, sustainable strategy.
What it covers
Your transition journey, de-risked, value proposition, capital plans your finance team trusts, governance the board can steward and KPIs that prove stakeholder outcomes drive performance. Case-backed, cross-industry with modern templates.
What you’ll leave with
- Board-ready sustainable strategy aligned to stakeholder expectations and avoiding common pitfalls
- KPI tree connecting ambition to sustainability, ethics, risk and performance
outcomes - 90-day plan to improve momentum and execution
Leadership with Purpose
Sustainable Strategic Management revolutionises strategic management by combining cutting-edge academic theories with the latest sustainable business practices.
Featuring a visionary framework for sustainable strategic management, this textbook offers practical strategies for aligning financial success with ethical and sustainable practice. It covers a spectrum of topics, from core principles of sustainable strategic management and technological disruptions to stakeholder engagement and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UNSDGs). The text thoroughly examines the interconnected relationship between sustainability and practical strategic decision-making efficacy and offers case studies, strategy nuggets and practical strategies throughout for integrating sustainable practices and reducing pushback from stakeholders.
Written for postgraduate students, executives and practitioners, this forward-looking resource empowers readers to lead the sustainability transition within organisations, preparing them for the challenges and opportunities of a rapidly changing business landscape.
From Backlash into Boardroom advantage
Kent Workshops
How can a sustainable strategy create sustainable value for organisations? Last November, in partnership with the Royal Society of Arts, I hosted a two-part workshop series in Kent to explore this question further.
According to Accenture, “an overwhelming 99 per cent of CEOs plan to maintain or increase their sustainability commitments, prioritising initiatives that deliver measurable business value.”
I delivered two place-based events in Canterbury and Tunbridge Wells to explore how to move the dial beyond talk to tangible ESG 2.0 solutions for Kent-based organisations.
Participants joined to hear live case study examples from the corporate sector and public sector to help reframe the big ESG 2.0 questions and identify solutions.
Congratulations to Dr Kristján Reykjalín Vigfússon
It was my honour to be appointed as one of the external examiners and opponents of doctoral candidate Kristján Reykjalín Vigfússon’s dissertation.
This was submitted to the Faculty of Business Administration, School of Social Sciences at the University of Iceland.
In partial fulfilment of the requirements of a PhD degree in Business. The dissertation was titled: “Strategy Implementation in Icelandic Fisheries – Obstacles, key success factors, and competitive advantages”.
I was delighted, together with the committee, to pass the defence of Dr Kristján Reykjalín Vigfússon’s dissertation.
The procedure at the defence is very different from the UK. The defence is an event intended to be an honour for the University, the Faculty, the candidate, and those who have contributed to the candidate’s work and the preparation of the public defence. The audience includes Faculty members, the candidate’s relatives, friends and colleagues.
Congratulations to Dr Kristján Reykjalín Vigfússon and his family, who treated us all to some wonderful Icelandic hospitality!
Sustainable Strategy Brief Live
Strategy eats compliance for breakfast
The first episode of my livestream show went live on 3 December 2025.
I am hosting Sustainable Strategy Brief Live, a short, practical livestream on how to turn ESG 2.0 into sustainable value – not just box-ticking.
The theme of the first episode on 3 December was: strategy eats compliance for breakfast. We had 322 registrants.
My guest for my inaugural show was Cecilia Thorn, ESG expert, and the Moderator was Michael Baxter of The ESG Show.
Watch the 1-minute video for an overview, or go to my YouTube Channel @SustainableStrategyBriefLive for the whole event and clips.
Discover how to Stay Ahead
Offerings
- Sustainable Strategy Management (Programmes)
- 30-Minute Sustainable Strategy Live Brief (Live Stream)
- Sustainable Strategy Brief (Newsletters and Blogs)
- Interactive Events (Workshops and Webinars)
- Playbooks (Digital frameworks and Tools)
About Paul
Professor Paul A. Phillips served for over two decades as Professor of Strategic Management at Kent Business School, University of Kent, UK. He also served as Deputy and Director of Kent Business School and held academic appointments at Cardiff Business School and the University of Surrey, UK.
In 2001, Paul was appointed to the Charles Forte Chair of Hotel Management at the University of Surrey. His earlier business career was as a qualified accountant and a Senior Management Consultant with Price Waterhouse. Professor Phillips holds an MBA and a PhD from Cardiff Business School and is a qualified marketer.
Selected Projects
Startup Global Online Business School —Sustainable strategy to revenue-ready
From concept to a sustainable, employer-backed, revenue-ready school.
Challenge
Create an UNSDG-focused, employer-backed online business school with global reach.
What we did
Created a strategic development plan, designed ecosystem and platform, produced a three year strategy, business plan, budget and cashflow model, with funding options.
Result
Clear vision and resilient operating model, enabling infrastructure to identify the internationalisation pathway.
UK Government — Deputy Prime Minister’s Office
From digitisation aspirations to an agile, execution-ready, sustainable organisation.
Challenge
Digital work wasn’t improving decisions or processes.
What we did
Executive outcomes workshop, mapped high-value decisions, prioritised the digital portfolio, and built a KPI tree with decision cadence.
Result
12–18 month roadmap with sequenced priorities and executive KPIs tied to policy & delivery outcomes, and decision lead times reduced.
UK Ministry of Defence — Digital Strategy & Agile Operating Model
From digitisation aspirations to an implementation-ready agile organisation.
Challenge
Momentum stalled across human factors and fragmented portfolios.
What we did
Benchmarked practices, ran operating model scenarios, executive working sessions, built a flexibility and agility framework, and set decision rights and ownership.
Result
Prioritised transition portfolio and critical path, agility embedded in governance, leadership behaviours reset, portfolio throughput increased.
China Development Bank — Growth Strategy
From regional aspirations to a knowledge-based global investment decision-making hub.
Challenge
Upskill 20 senior managers and unify appraisal standards for global retail acquisitions.
What we did
Led the delivery of a two-week in-company programme with UK and European finance experts and City of London field visits, with master classes and round tables events on financing methods and investment of funds.
Result
Methods embedded into China Development Bank’s acquisition approach, more consistent governance and faster deal-review cycles to redefine its future.
Canterbury Retail Challenge — Place-based growth
From lecture theatre to a knowledge-based retail consulting firm.
Challenge
Strengthen student employability and local business performance.
What we did
Created a new university degree module with multi stakeholder workshops, student consulting with real firms, community events, and translating insights into action.
Result
Student employability capability uplift, The BBC said it was an example of the university demonstrating its value and direct contribution to Kent society.