Manufacturing SME's — A sustainable approach, a sustainable leader

Sustainability is an important Global issue and today more than ever, the importance of responsible and effective environmental management within business and industry cannot be overstated. Our ability to reduce our environmental impact whilst improving efficiency and competitiveness is absolutely essential if we are to ensure the future resilience and sustainability of the Northern Ireland (NI) economy. The research presented here, while not a conclusive overview of sustainable leadership but is an attempt to give some meaningful information about the complexity related to sustainable leadership within business in NI By using multi-method approaches such as surveys, semi structured interviews, local business case studies and the analysis of an existing benchmarking report the overall findings reveal a considerable amount of similarities such as common personality traits and leadership styles. Sustainable leaders share common goals within N.I business such as engaging with the circular economy and collaboration with external stakeholders such as communities and business forums. Ultimately, sustainability leadership must be judged by the success actions taken and whether leaders inspire and support others to follow their vision and passion for a better world.