We are delighted to welcome our new Chief Sustainability Officer, Jamie Hall. Jamie will lead our technical division, Briar, alongside helping to drive our ambitious environmental, social value and corporate governance strategy, ensuring we limit our impact on the environment and play our part in preventing climate change. In this Q&A, we will delve into Jamie’s background and gain some insight into his plans for Zenergi.
1. What led you to taking the role of Chief Sustainability Officer at Zenergi?
I had heard nothing but great things about the Zenergi Group and having spent time with the management team and now the wider business, it’s clear to me why that’s the case. The positive culture and the passion to deliver an exceptional service, combined with the expertise we have across the business really does make this a very exciting place to be.
As for the role itself, I am always excited by opportunities where I can make an impact and with sustainability now being such a fundamental part of our daily lives, both personally and at work, its great to be at a company which has such an impressive track record and is solely focussed on tackling climate change, which is probably the biggest challenge we’ve ever faced as a global society.
2. Can you tell us a bit about your background and career to date?
I have spent my career working across the energy and sustainability services sector. Over the past decade I’ve held a range of leadership roles, from operations to sales and technology. Throughout that time, I am fortunate enough to have worked in a sector that I am passionate about and to have supported many organisations, in the UK and globally, shape and deliver their sustainability objectives.
3. When did your interest and passion for sustainability first begin?
I have always had an interest in nature and the environment. When studying at University, I certainly became more aware of how engineering and technology can be used to minimise the environmental impacts that are happening across world.
Throughout my professional life I’ve also witnessed a significant shift, as sustainability has moved from being an afterthought or a tick box exercise, to becoming key to many businesses’ core strategy.
4. What do you see as the main challenges for organisations in setting and achieving sustainability targets?
Across the UK we are already witnessing a significant lack of the skills and resource needed to overcome some of the challenges posed by climate change. When you consider the scale of change required over a relatively short period of time, this will add to that pressure. Most organisations will be missing a lot of this in-house expertise and will therefore rely upon external support to guide them on the journey that is right for them, which will be different for every organisation.
5. In which areas do you see opportunity for Zenergi?
Everywhere! It’s an interesting time for businesses like ours working in energy, sustainability, and carbon reduction as there is clearly a lot to do, which is why we need to stay focussed.
When you consider something like Net Zero, we are already seeing a huge demand from customers, across all sectors, wanting to get Net Zero ready. To support that transition, customers need good data and advice they can trust, and once they have a strategy in place, they then need partners to help them with implementation.
A lot of the decarbonisation solutions across Scope 1 & 2, for example, are specialist from an energy or engineering perspective, so Zenergi’s capability means we are perfectly placed to provide that support and I’m excited by the plans for continued and sustained investment in the resources required to keep pace with the transition.
6. What are you most looking forward to in your new role at Zenergi?
I’m really excited by the reach of our organisation from an environmental and social value perspective. Zenergi works with many organisations, big and small, however, the majority of our activity actually sits across the public sector, in three main areas: education, social housing and healthcare.
So, whether it’s educating the energy users of the future through our network of 3,000 schools, or helping to provide heat and reduce energy costs for those in society who are most vulnerable – I’m glad to be doing my small part, alongside a team of experienced, talented, and passionate people in the Zenergi Family.
