Jami Patrick
Nominated for: 30 Over 30 Award
Title: VP, Sustainability Advisory
Company: Montrose Environmental Group
Years in Profession: 30
Nominator: Margaret Dunbar, VP, Marketing, Montrose Environmental Group, colleague of Jami.
Tell us why this person deserves recognition for making a difference in the practice of EHS & Sustainability management. (500 words max.)*
I am honored to nominate Ms. Jami Patrick, Vice President of Sustainability Advisory at Montrose Environmental Group. Ms. Patrick’s experience, contributions, passion, and leadership make her an outstanding candidate. With almost 30 years of experience in EHS&S, she has become a trusted advisor to countless organizations. She supports clients throughout their sustainability journeys, from strategy and planning to program development and implementation, performance management, and reporting. Her experience in EHS management systems and compliance provides a solid understanding of business realities and serves as a foundation for helping clients translate ESG and climate ambitions into operational actions. Her diverse skill set allows her to develop comprehensive sustainability solutions that drive positive change.
As the VP for Sustainability Advisory since July 2022, Ms. Patrick has successfully established a climate change and corporate sustainability practice within Montrose, which has already demonstrated success by winning work supporting clients' net zero ambitions and helping tell their sustainability stories. Through this client work, she has had an exponential impact on enhancing environmental and sustainability performance globally. Her newly developed team is also foundational to allowing Montrose to execute its ‘One Montrose’ approach, as solutions to sustainability and climate challenges often require a multidisciplinary approach.
While Ms. Patrick’s role at Montrose is largely client-focused, she has also taken on the responsibility to lead Montrose on its own sustainability journey. In this role, she is truly making a difference within our organization. Ms. Patrick has worked directly with our Board and Executive Leadership to gain support for Montrose’s sustainability program. In the past year, her efforts have resulted in increased stakeholder engagement, the completion of our first materiality assessment, the completion of our first global Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions inventories, and (by July 31) the publication of our most robust Sustainability Report to date.
Ms. Patrick is also a staunch sustainability advocate, leading multiple global industry discussions surrounding sustainable business practices. As an example, Jami is delivering a keynote at the Energy + Environment 2023 Solutions Summit, on ‘where to start’ regarding sustainability/ESG first steps. Additionally, she is a World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) Leadership Program graduate, showcasing her relentless pursuit of sustainability know-how and innovative approaches to incorporating sustainability into business decision-making.
Ms. Patrick’s contributions to our clients’ sustainability journeys have inspired others to embrace sustainable approaches, and her ability to communicate complex concepts in a relatable manner has made her a respected sustainability leader worthy of recognition.
Describe a situation or initiative where the nominee was directly responsible for a significant achievement and/or advancement in the practice of EHS & Sustainability management. Include metrics and KPIs if available. (500 words max.)*
One of the many sustainable initiatives that Ms. Patrick has been responsible for was the significant advancements and leadership guidance provided to Valero as they seek to mature their approach to Environmental Justice (EJ). As part of this initiative, Ms. Patrick led a multidisciplinary team in assessing Valero’s current practices that support and promote EJ, understanding the demographics and the views of communities in which Valero operates its refineries, and identifying recommended actions for Valero to consider in order to further operationalize their commitment to EJ.
She led the EJ audit process, which took over four months and involved extensive outreach with the community, including more than 30 interviews, and substantive assessment of Valero’s policies and practices related to the pillars of EJ. Under Ms. Patrick’s guidance, the team assessed environmental factors associated with monitoring, permitting, compliance, and EJ as well as Valero’s actions related to community outreach and engagement, community feedback, and investments in communities. Through this initiative, Ms. Patrick and the project team identified opportunities for Valero to strengthen its approach to EJ, such as identifying opportunities to more explicitly integrate EJ considerations into key company policies, conducting EJ awareness-level training, and establishing corporate-level expectations regarding community outreach and engagement in advance of future permitting activities. The outcomes of the assessment led Valero to transparently publish the report directly to its website.
This initiative showcases one of the many ways that Ms. Patrick has addressed complex sustainability challenges and achieved meaningful progress across industries, exemplifying her ability to drive significant achievements in the practice of EHS & sustainability management.
In your opinion, what are the predominant skills and attributes that directly contribute to the nominee’s effectiveness and success? (500 words max.)*
Ms. Patrick’s leadership drives positive change and fosters a culture of sustainability within Montrose. When she came to Montrose in July 2022, Ms. Patrick hit the ground running by assessing our approach to sustainability and making key recommendations to our Board and Executive Leadership to ensure our organization was ‘walking the talk’ and working towards being a sustainability leader. Ms. Patrick worked directly with leadership to articulate the business case for sustainability, showcasing her tenacious leadership in strengthening our sustainability strategy. Her ability to assume this pivotal role and spearhead significant change in our organization in less than a year demonstrates her proactive approach and a strong sense of responsibility. Ms. Patrick’s leadership has enabled Montrose to have a robust understanding of our material sustainability issues, increase the scope and transparency in our non-financial reporting, and make a commitment to Net Zero by 2040, providing Montrose with a solid foundation for its sustainability strategy and its role in the transition to a low-carbon economy.
Additionally, Ms. Patrick possesses an exceptional level of subject matter expertise. Her strategic thinking and ability to translate vision into actionable plans have been crucial to the success of not only Montrose's sustainability program, but in our client services. An Environmental Engineer by training Ms. Patrick spent many early years in client facilities, gaining a ‘boots on the ground’ understanding that is often lacking in sustainability advisory consultancy.
Finally, what truly sets Ms. Patrick apart is her passion. She has an energy and a drive for sustainability that is unmatched, and she commits herself wholly to everything she does. She takes every opportunity to educate colleagues and help them understand not only why sustainability is important, but how to make changes to everyday actions in order to make a difference and minimize our impact on the environment. Ms. Patrick also seeks out experiences that help her expand her horizons. She has lived in Turkey, England, and Abu Dhabi and travels extensively – learning about different cultures and helping her to see issues from multiple perspectives. Her passion for people is evident in her daily working style: taking the time to talk to a new employee, helping groups navigate work-life balance, or meeting with a team member who might be feeling challenged.
Ms. Patrick’s passion, thought leadership, and ability to translate her subject matter expertise to meet others at different levels of sustainability knowledge motivates her colleagues to be better leaders.
Share the ways this nominee has positively influenced you, both personally and professionally. You may also include reflections and quotes from others including executives, direct reports, colleagues, suppliers, and clients. (500 words max.)*
Professionally, Ms. Patrick's impact has been transformative. When I first met her, it was evident that she would be a great organizational fit. Her wealth of experience and expertise in the sustainability space surpassed my own, making it easy to entrust her with our ESG reports and sustainability efforts. Her ability to take the reins and make our program flourish in ways I could not have done myself has been remarkable. Ms. Patrick's contributions have been so significant that it often feels like she has been a part of Montrose for much longer than she actually has.
My colleague Scott Churbock describes Ms. Patrick in this way: “The distinction between good and exceptional environmental professionals lies not merely in their ability to complete tasks, but in their capacity to prioritize and accomplish the right tasks that will yield the greatest benefit for the client. I have observed Jami demonstrate this skill on numerous occasions where she could have billed more hours, yet she always places the client’s best interests at the core of her actions.” Ms. Patrick's tenacity and passion are qualities that many of us have witnessed personally. For example, despite recently enduring a severe injury from a fall while running, she recognized the urgency of completing a critical report for a client. Even while recovering, she ensured the client received a report of the highest quality. This report was publicly shared by our client as their roadmap to enhancing environmental performance, community engagement, and transparency. It was one of the most crucial reports ever requested from a consultant, and Ms. Patrick recognized the client's reliance on our team, ensuring its successful completion.
Ms. Patrick's personable and fun nature has also made her a joy to interact with. Her passion for what she does shines through in every conversation, and she has been a strong advocate for environmental and social issues. I have had the privilege of engaging in discussions with her about these topics, and her enthusiasm has been contagious. Her radiant positive energy brightens every room she enters, and she effortlessly forges connections with everyone she encounters. This energy permeates every task and project she undertakes, and clients admire her engaging interactions, as do her teammates. Moreover, she consistently treats everyone with friendliness and respect, including those in the early stages of learning our trade, showcasing her passion for making sustainability concepts accessible and easily understandable.
Finally, Ms. Patrick is an authentic sustainability advocate and a role model for incorporating sustainability into one's lifestyle. Ms. Patrick serves as an inspiration to me in terms of how to treat others and how to excel as an ESG professional. It is an honor to work alongside her as my colleague.
Provide one or more examples of nominee’s commitment to environmental stewardship within their organization and/or the community. (500 words max.)*
Ms. Patrick’s role in leading Montrose on its own sustainability journey has been instrumental in driving positive change and integrating sustainability into our organization. Her expertise, leadership, and dedication have enabled her to introduce structure and implement an approach that aligns with best practices in sustainable business. One notable achievement under her leadership was the successful execution of Montrose's first formal materiality assessment. This assessment involved engaging with both internal and external stakeholders to gain insights into critical environmental, social, and governance (ESG) topics for the company. By conducting this assessment, Montrose was able to identify and prioritize the most pressing ESG issues, ensuring that our sustainability strategy aligns with stakeholder expectations. This strategic alignment has not only enhanced transparency but has also fostered stakeholder trust while driving long-term sustainability performance.
In addition to the materiality assessment, she played a crucial role in the development of Montrose's first-ever global Scope 1 and Scope 2 greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions inventories, as well as the creation of the company's first Scope 3 value chain GHG emissions inventory. These emissions inventories, crafted under her guidance, provide Montrose with data on GHG emissions across all operations and our value chain, so that we better understand our own impacts on climate change. These baseline inventories will be used to help Montrose measure is progress on emissions reduction efforts.
Lastly, Ms. Patrick made recommendations to the Board and our Executive Leadership Team around sustainability performance goals, and as a result, Montrose has established and will soon be announcing our new commitments: Net Zero by 2040, and gender balance by 2040. These long-term goals set the foundation for our ambitions, and will soon be underpinned by near-term targets (via the Science-based Target Initiative, in the case of GHG emissions). The results of our materiality assessment, our GHG emissions inventories, and our Net Zero and gender balance goals will be published in Montrose's upcoming Sustainability report in July.
Ms. Patrick’s leadership in Montrose's sustainability program has been revolutionary. Her commitment and expertise have not only propelled the organization forward but have also fostered a culture of environmental responsibility within Montrose. Her communication skills aim to unify Montrose under our mission to collectively address the environmental challenges of tomorrow. As a result, the company now stands at the forefront of responsible environmental practices, taking proactive steps to address sustainability issues and uphold stakeholder expectations. With Ms. Patrick at the helm, our company continues to drive innovation, reduce environmental impacts, and inspire others within the industry to follow suit.