The mandate

A deliberate change of pace is required to deal with public commitments requiring operational and financial ownership within a privately held integrated automotive and components manufacturer. The immediate arena is the commercial-vehicle platform during a regional profitability recovery. For mandate 300, the successful executive inherits decisions that have been deferred, competing stakeholder expectations and a need to establish facts before committing further capital.

The Chief Sustainability Officer operating perimeter covers approximately SEK 13,350 million in regional revenue and programme portfolio, with activity spanning several commercial-vehicle platform customer, product and delivery clusters rather than a single asset. The Chief Sustainability Officer Automotive remit carries direct influence over roughly 1,800 colleagues and third-party capacity.

The chair, executive committee and principal capital sponsors want a Chief Sustainability Officer who can convert ambiguity into a short list of explicit choices for the commercial-vehicle platform. The Chief Sustainability Officer Automotive seat must resolve a regional profitability recovery, while preserving the underlying strengths of the commercial-vehicle platform. For mandate 300, value will come through sharper allocation, stronger leaders and an operating cadence that exposes variance early.

The Chief Sustainability Officer’s first year on the commercial-vehicle platform is expected to end with auditable delivery, capital integration and credible stakeholder reporting. In mandate 300, authority covers resources and leadership appointments; material trade-offs go directly to the board sponsor.

Why this seat is open

This is an urgent replacement for the Chief Sustainability Officer — Commercial-Vehicle Platform seat following an accelerated leadership transition. Interim accountability is in place for the commercial-vehicle platform, but the board wants a permanent appointment within 6–8 weeks because a regional profitability recovery cannot remain under split ownership. The predecessor’s outcome is being handled neutrally and professionally. The external search remains confidential until the preferred candidate and transition plan are agreed.

What you will own

• Set the Chief Sustainability Officer value-creation thesis for the commercial-vehicle platform, translate it into no more than five enterprise priorities and stop work that does not support them.
• Carry stewardship of approximately SEK 13,350 million in regional revenue and programme portfolio, including allocation, risk acceptance and board forecasts.
• Lead the Chief Sustainability Officer Automotive organisation of about 1,800 employees and partners, appointing a team with clear decision rights and credible succession for every critical seat.
• Resolve the commercial-vehicle platform economics and execution constraints created by a regional profitability recovery, with Chief Sustainability Officer-approved owners, dated milestones and transparent escalation thresholds.
• Establish one Chief Sustainability Officer operating review across commercial, customer, financial, people, technology and risk outcomes for the commercial-vehicle platform; remove reconciliations that obscure accountability.
• Have converted strategy into explicit capital and resource choices and then tracked execution through board governance in mandate 300.
• Build the Chief Sustainability Officer’s three-year succession and capability plan for the commercial-vehicle platform, reducing dependence on individual executives and improving mobility across the wider Automotive organisation.

The first 12 months

• Days 1–90: Validate the commercial-vehicle platform baseline, meet the 30 stakeholders most consequential to public commitments requiring operational and financial ownership, assess the leadership team, stabilise immediate delivery risks and agree a board-owned scorecard with explicit decision gates.
• Months 4–9: Make the principal Chief Sustainability Officer portfolio and organisation choices for the commercial-vehicle platform, install the new operating cadence, fill critical leadership gaps and deliver the first measurable release of cash, capacity or customer value.
• Months 10–12: Demonstrate a repeatable commercial-vehicle platform trend against auditable delivery, capital integration and credible stakeholder reporting, lock the following year’s capital and talent plan, evidence control sustainability and present a credible three-year value case with downside actions.

What the board will measure

• Delivery of the Chief Sustainability Officer’s agreed first-year commercial-vehicle platform value case within a 10% tolerance, with variance explained before rather than after the relevant quarter closes.
• A Chief Sustainability Officer forecast that remains decision-useful across three consecutive quarters and reconciles the commercial-vehicle platform’s operating, cash, customer and people assumptions.
• Closure of the Chief Sustainability Officer mandate’s highest-priority commercial-vehicle platform risk and execution issues by their board-approved dates, with independent evidence that fixes are sustained.
• Retention of at least 90% of critical commercial-vehicle platform talent and ready-now successors for at least 70% of the Chief Sustainability Officer’s direct reports.
• A quantified Chief Sustainability Officer-owned improvement in the commercial-vehicle platform operating constraint behind a regional profitability recovery, supported by a clean baseline and named data owner.
• Clear stakeholder confidence in mandate 300: no unresolved high-severity escalation older than 30 days and no material surprise withheld from its agreed governance forum.

The person

You are currently a Chief Sustainability Officer, Transition Executive or Operations Strategy Leader in a privately held Automotive or adjacent enterprise. In relation to the commercial-vehicle platform, your Chief Sustainability Officer track record includes a transition where the original plan was no longer sufficient; you can explain your choices, evidence and numerical impact. Candidates from automotive, industrial manufacturing, mobility, components or engineering services will be considered where the operating model, customer stakes and governance intensity match this Chief Sustainability Officer brief.

As a Chief Sustainability Officer candidate, you bring 18–22 years of progressive Automotive or adjacent-sector experience, consistent with the 18-22 experience band. At minimum, you have carried a P&L, book, budget or accountable portfolio of SEK 7,750 million and led an organisation of at least 1,250 people.

For mandate 300, the board wants two transitions: a difficult commercial-vehicle platform portfolio choice and a leadership-system change during a regional profitability recovery. As the prospective Chief Sustainability Officer for this commercial-vehicle platform, you must challenge optimistic cases and still create followership. References for mandate 300 must distinguish your contribution from the institution around you.

The Chief Sustainability Officer must be based in Gothenburg; international relocation is supported, but this Automotive role is not designed as a remote appointment.

Non-negotiables

• Current or recent accountability at the level of Chief Sustainability Officer, Transition Executive or Operations Strategy Leader, with direct exposure to a board, investment committee or equivalent Automotive governance forum.
• Proven Chief Sustainability Officer ownership of at least SEK 7,750 million and leadership of no fewer than 1,250 employees in a comparable commercial-vehicle platform context.
• One completed Automotive or adjacent-sector example of public commitments requiring operational and financial ownership with outcomes sustained for at least two reporting periods after the initial intervention.
• Sector credibility from automotive, industrial manufacturing, mobility, components or engineering services; experience that is purely functional and lacks Chief Sustainability Officer-level commercial-vehicle platform consequences will not meet the bar.
• Willingness to meet the Gothenburg location expectation, complete conflicts and background diligence, and protect the confidentiality of mandate 300.

Compensation and terms

The anticipated Chief Sustainability Officer package is SEK 2.8–3.8 million base + annual incentive, calibrated to the final commercial-vehicle platform scope and the candidate’s current mix. Any long-term participation for mandate 300 follows standard vesting and performance conditions. The Chief Sustainability Officer appointment in Gothenburg, centred on the commercial-vehicle platform, offers regular exposure to the chair, executive committee and principal capital sponsors. A notice period of up to 6 months can be accommodated for the selected executive in mandate 300.

Confidentiality

To protect the board, incumbent team and candidate, the organisation remains unnamed until a confidential conversation confirms mutual relevance for mandate 300. The operating facts have been rounded and blended expressly to remove identifying signals for mandate 300.

Infrastructure