Combining over 42 years of experience, Mike and Alex launched The Sustainability Group in 2019 to help organisations around the globe implement more sustainable, just, and profitable business practices.

Through both financial and non-financial objectives, The Sustainability Group helps organisations of all sizes achieve greater economic and environmental performance through the incremental  adaptation of their existing business practices.

We believe the businesses that will thrive and prosper in the future have three things in common: they know what they stand for, they know how to measure it effectively, and they communicate it with passion.

These three principles are what The Sustainability Group is here to help you achieve.

The Sustainability Group was founded from the belief that it made good business sense for enterprises to measure, communicate and grow value in financial, environmental and social terms.

Having worked in some of the toughest environments on earth – from conflict zones to natural disasters – Mike witnessed first-hand that the long-term solution to many of these systemic problems was not aid alone, but that solutions also depended on the ability of organisations to make social impact and sustainability an integral part of business strategy.

While working together on an innovative programme that measured the effect climate change is having on the world’s oceans, Mike and Alex realized they had a shared vision to transform the way organisations operated amidst a growing global demand for sustainability. By reinventing the way organisations could gain access implement and measure the impact of sustainable business practices, they believed companies of all sizes could become more resilient and adaptable to an ever-evolving business environment.

Together, in 2019, they launched The Sustainability Group to help organisations have a positive effect on society and the planet, as well as improve their diversity, value and attractiveness to both customers and investors.

Meaningful change is required across all industries and will occur when two conditions are met: when customers demand it and when capital is conditional upon it.

Our mission is to inspire organisations to recognise that having a positive social and environmental impact rewards everyone. Through the provision of simple yet rigorous actions and measurements, The Sustainability Group helps everyone who works with us to achieve success in a way that customers appreciate, and markets value.

Due to the recent political upheavals, worsening environmental threats and economic instability, we believe that the time for organisations to embrace a more resilient and sustainable approach to business is now.

Consumers are now demanding that the businesses they engage with are not only able to explain how resilient and sustainable they are – but to also demonstrate the measurable difference they are making in societal and environmental terms.  Paired with the phenomenal rise of ESG investing and the exceptional returns high ESG rated funds provide, it is clearer than ever that values create value.

Mike Penrose is a world-renowned expert on risk, crisis and disaster management with an extensive history of advising businesses on their social impact and sustainability.

Prior to co-founding The Sustainability Group in 2019, Mike worked in more than 60 countries on disaster and risk management operations during his time as the Executive Director of Unicef UK, CEO of Action Contre La Faim in Paris and Global Humanitarian Director of Save the Children. Most recently, he led the UN and UK Government response to COVID-19 in the world’s largest refugee camp.

Throughout his career, Mike has been passionate about working with businesses of all sizes to improve their social impact and sustainability. In addition to developing ESG investment strategies as a former advisor to the FTSE on their ESG index, he continues to work with a number of investment firms and family offices to match social impact with high return investment strategies, as well as advising large commercial organisations on how to operate effectively and ethically in fragile environments.

As a former hostage who was kidnapped during the war in Chechnya in 1996, Mike also occasionally works as a councillor for other former hostages and their families.

Alex Smith is a seasoned business development and operations expert with an unparalleled track record of developing collaborative, strategic and commercially successful partnerships for businesses and brands around the world.

Leveraging her extensive background in creating high-impact partnerships in commercial sport – particularly in the sailing and hospitality industries – Alex has led and managed sustainability and social impact projects for the brands, government departments, and sporting organisations to achieve both commercial and environmental outcomes.  Prior to co-founding The Sustainability Group, she was most recently the Commercial Director for Clipper Round the World Yacht Race, where she was responsible for the development and execution of several innovative global partnerships.

As both a leader and woman in FinTech, Alex is an advocate for providing all individuals, businesses and communities with the resources and tools they need to instigate positive change. She is acutely aware of the power that comes from connecting values and purpose with business objectives; through this lens she continues to develop innovative strategies for The Sustainability Groups’ clients that drive societal, environmental and financial success.