Don Young
Nominated for: Lifetime Achievement Award
Title: Executive VP & Chief Sustainability Officer
Company: J.M. Huber Corporation
Years in Profession: 45+
Nominator: Eric Reynolds, Global EHS & Sustainability Director, CP Kelco, a J.M. Huber Company, Colleague of Don.
Provide an overview of the nominee's 20-plus years of professional experience, including previous management positions held, current role, and key accomplishments. (500 words max.)*
J.M. HUBER CORPORATION (Executive VP & Chief Sustainability Officer) 2014 – Present
A 6th generation, family-owned global business with approximately 5000 employees and $3.3B in revenue.
- C-Suite executive integrating sustainability/ESG considerations into Huber’s business strategy
- Achievements contributed to Huber winning the prestigious 2021 IMD-Pictet Sustainability in Family Business global award as the world’s most sustainable family business
- Chairs Huber’s biennial Global Sustainability Summit for Employees, Board, and Owners
- Chairs standing EHS&S committee of the Board
- Achieved best-in-company history Occupational and PSM safety performance
- Developed proprietary capital deployment decision-making tool, taking into account economic, environmental, and social (including safety) considerations
NATIONAL ENERGY BOARD CANADA (Permanent (full time) Board Member) 2013 – 2014
An independent federal regulator whose purpose is to promote safety and security, environmental protection, and efficient infrastructure and markets in the Canadian
public interest within the mandate set by Parliament for the regulation of pipelines, energy development, and trade.
- Appointed by Canada’s Prime Minister through Governor in Council, served on quasi-judicial panels, adjudicating on the review and approval of Canadian and international oil and natural gas pipelines and power lines and associated infrastructure, including maritime terminals based on the projects’ ESG/sustainability characteristics (environmental, safety, economic and social considerations)
SMITH & NEPHEW PLC (Senior Vice-President Corporate Sustainability) 2010 – 2012
A $4+ billion global medical technology company with 11,000 employees providing health care solutions to improve people’s lives for over 160 years.
- Developed the company’s first comprehensive global sustainability strategy and CSR Report
- Achieved continuous improvements in third-party sustainability performance evaluations for DJSI, FTSE4Good, and CDP
- Led the development of world-class safety culture
DUCKS UNLIMITED, INC. (Executive VP - now CEO and Member of Board) 1999-2009
One of the world’s most credible and respected non-profit organizations focused on science, environmental problem solving, and public policy.
- Leadership of 500+ staff, 70,000+ volunteers, 750,000+ members, Board, corporate and public sector partners
- Leadership in conserving 4.5 million acres of habitat
- Led the world’s largest conservation philanthropy campaign ($1.7 billion)
- Led conservation strategic plans with the U.S., Canada, and Mexico
- Provided leadership in environmental policy with the federal government (including directly with the U.S. President, Vice-President, and Cabinet) and Congress
- Publisher of Magazine and Television shows
DUCKS UNLIMITED CANADA (Executive VP - now CEO) 1995-1999
Canada’s largest and most effective science and conservation not-for-profit.
- Responsible for all staff (450), 8000 volunteers, and Board
- Grew Canadian habitat conservation to 17 million acres
- Led consultation with the Prime Minister and Premiers, cabinet members, and regulatory agencies
GOLDER ASSOCIATES LTD./ ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT ASSOCIATES (Principal & Board Member) 1979-1995
An employee-owned global environmental, social science, and engineering consultancy with 9000 employees in 180 global offices.
- Led the merger of Environmental Management Associates (as owner and founder) with Golder Associates
- Provided leadership on global business strategy
- Provided leadership in environmental impact assessment, health & safety, engineering, and socio-economic services to a diverse spectrum of global industries
- Leadership in developing a Canadian National Wetland Policy
Please list a minimum of two examples that demonstrate the nominee's distinguished service and leadership within the fields of environment, health, safety and/or sustainability at the corporate management level. Examples may include: Company or industry-related recognition and awards, board appointments, publications, public speaking engagements, and relevant service or volunteer positions. (500 words max.)*
Throughout his 45+ year career, Don has served in a diverse array of leadership roles contributing to his credentials as an international EHS&S leader. Examples include:
- Served on Presidents’ G.W. Bush and Obama Presidential Transition Teams regarding environmental policy
- Extensive direct engagement on a multi-year basis with multiple U.S. Presidents, Vice-President, Cabinet members, and Congress (including congressional testimony) on national and international environmental legislative and policy topics
- Executive Chair of J.M. Huber’s EHS&S Committee of the Board of Directors
- Chairs the J.M. Huber biennial 3-day Global Sustainability Summit for approximately 300 Employees, Board and Owners, customers, and sustainability thought leaders
- Through his leadership and contributions, J.M. Huber Corporation was selected as:
- Winner of the prestigious 2021 IMD-Pictet Sustainability in Family Business global award as the world’s most sustainable family business
- Four-time winner Deloitte U.S. Best Managed Companies – sustainable business performance
- Univ Vt Grossman Business School – 2021 Award – A most sustainable global family business
- Appointed by Canada’s Prime Minister through Governor in Council to National Energy Board
- Invited member of World Business Council Sustainable Development; Conference Board ESG Forum, Sustainability 50; World Environment Center, NAEM– leading associations of global Chief Sustainability Officers
- Selected by global peers as Top 50 Environmental Leader
- Service on multiple private and not-for-profit boards of directors: Golder Associates Inc; Ducks Unlimited Inc; NAEM Board of Regents; Shelby Farms Park Conservancy; Wonders of Wildlife Museum and Aquarium; Orpheum Theatre; Alzheimer’s Association; Regions and Renaissance Banks
- First Canadian selected to serve as Ducks Unlimited Inc. CEO
- Provided leadership that led to the recognition of the Ducks Unlimited Canada organization by Angus Reid polling company as “Canada’s most trusted and respected conservation organization.”
- Multiple public speaking engagements for the EHS&S industry, including NAEM webinars; Conference Board ESG Forum; MAPI; KF Chief Sustainability Officers’ Roundtable; U.S. Army Corps of Engineer’s keynote for Annual Meeting; U.S. State Governors’ Association keynote presentation on environmental policy; annual keynote presentations to Ducks Unlimited international conventions (1500 attendees); Georgia Tech University; University of Vermont
- Multiple published articles on environmental topics for refereed journals
Identify and define the nominee's impact on company performance. Outline pertinent EHS&S initiatives and/or programs. Provide measurement of impact through metrics or KPIs. (500 words max.)*
Don is a results-driven, solutions-oriented leader who both inspires and delivers performance. Specific examples of achievements across a diverse set of companies include:
- Huber’s sustainability/ESG and community engagement strategies
- Sustainability/ESG considerations firmly embedded in Huber’s overall business strategy
- Sustainability material assessments (two generations of these) to identify high-priority topics and associated metrics
- Zero Process Safety Management (PSM) incidents for over three years
- Highest level of Occupational Safety performance in company history
- Top decile ratings for safety culture benchmarked against highest performing companies globally for all industries
- Record levels of dedicated funding to strategic philanthropy partners
- 34% of energy is derived from renewable energy sources
- 4% reduction in GHG emissions
- 50% of manufacturing sites qualified as Zero Waste to landfill sites
- Zero Material NOV’s
- Zero material environmental fines
- 100% of supply chain Tier 1 partners assessed for sustainability performance
- 100% of capital projects were evaluated for sustainability performance attributes
- 83% of capital projects were determined to have sustainability characteristics (environmental, safety, social and economic) performance
- CDP Score B-
- Ecovadis Score Silver
Smith & Nephew sustainability and community engagement strategies
- Sustainability materiality assessment to identify high-priority topics and associated metrics
- Developed the company’s first sustainability and community engagement strategies
- Developed high-performance safety culture
- Achieved high-level performance, recognized by third parties, including FTFS4Good and DJSI
Continent-wide conservation planning
- 4.5 mil acres of habitat conserved through Ducks Unlimited in the U.S.
- 17 million acres of habitat protected through Ducks Unlimited in Canada
- Tripartite continental conservation strategies for the U.S., Canada, and Mexico
- Public policy engagement with Executive and Legislative branches of government to deliver record funding for the U.S. Congress North American Wetlands Conservation Act and U.S. Farm Bill conservation provisions, including the Conservation and Wetlands Reserve Programs
- Exceeded goal of the world’s largest ($1.7 billion) conservation fund-raising program
- Development of a National Wetlands policy for Canada
Describe the nominee's leadership style and provide examples of his/her commitment to advancing professionals within the EHS&S fields. (500 words max.)*
Don’s leadership style is relationship-oriented, with an unrelenting focus on change, resilience, adaptability, passion, urgency, optimism, and customer intimacy. Don has achieved significant success by leading and promoting cross-functional collaboration in highly matrixed and regulated global organizations. He understands diverse and complex stakeholder expectations and has a career-long aptitude for identifying emerging risks and market trends. He is a global citizen (dual citizenship) with a strong interest in cultural and geo-political issues based on work and travel throughout North and South America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Asia.
Fundamentally, Don’s role as a C-suite leader has enabled him to influence strategic-level business decisions. Examples of expanding the influence of EHS&S across the business and across functions include:
- A proprietary Huber capital investment decision-making tool was developed under the leadership of the Huber sustainability team yet with deep collaboration with the finance, engineering, and IT teams. This tool enables real-time, quantitative assessments of capital project impacts (financial, environmental, and social), enabling scenario planning and trade-off analyses at the plant, business, and management investment committee levels
- Under Don’s leadership, EHS&S in the M&A process has evolved into a role where EHS&S considerations are now a formal strategic screen in the earliest stages of the deal process, including identifying not only risks but also opportunities. EHS&S considerations related to M&A opportunities are now a standing agenda topic for the quarterly EHS&S Board committee
- Talent Management is strategically important, and with current and potential employee expectations to work for a “company with a purpose,” EHS&S has a central role in Huber’s recruitment and retention strategy. Huber communicates its sustainability commitment through the Company’s website, and the EHS&S team participates in the candidate recruitment and interviewing process
- Given Huber’s commitment to producing Products on Purpose, the EHS&S team has developed strong relationships with the Innovation and R&D teams to incorporate sustainability considerations in product ideation and design
- Huber’s commercial and marketing teams incorporate sustainability topics into our commercial value proposition as a competitive differentiator. This includes having sustainability leaders (including Don) participate in sales calls to demonstrate alignment of Huber’s sustainability commitments with those of key customers
- The power of recognition is vital for employee engagement. Huber has developed global EHS&S awards to recognize global plant sites’ financial, environmental, and social performance. This recognition platform has an extremely high profile with employees, the Board, and the Family owners. Additionally, these awards are a prominent feature in Huber’s Annual Report
- While at Ducks Unlimited, Don played a leadership role in influencing national environmental public policy, including serving on two U.S. Presidential Transition teams to provide input on environmental policy formation. Subsequent to this, he had direct engagement with the President, Vice-President, Cabinet members, and Congress to formulate legislation and policies with national and international environmental implications. He performed a similar role in Canada, where he engaged with the Prime Minister, his cabinet, and provincial governments on environmental and conservation public policy and program issues
Provide two examples of nominee's commitment to industry advancements and lifelong learning. Examples may include: Continuing education, corporate or university teaching, patents, strategic initiatives, breakthrough program development, and other definable actions. (500 words max.)*
Don is driven by a refusal to accept complacency and a relentless focus on innovation and adaptation. Examples include:
Technical Advancements
- Occupational Safety is a pre-eminent topic at Huber. The industry typically measures safety performance through the lens of lagging indicators, particularly Total Injury Rate (TIR). Behaviorally, this has the potential to dissuade employees from reporting incidents to meet zero injury metrics. Under Don’s leadership, while Huber wants transparency in reporting all incidents, the Company has evolved to reporting publicly (including to the Board) only those incidents where the nature of the energy source associated with that incident is rated as High (e.g., hazardous chemicals, electrocution, fall from heights, etc. that could cause significant injury or a fatality). In support of this, the Company developed a Management System standard to provide guidance (with the specific categorization of all potential energy levels and risks) to ensure that events are correctly categorized by energy level and risk to focus on exposure and potential for negative impact(s). Consistently and accurately determining the energy level of events helps define the appropriate priorities for mitigating risks and completing action items and minimizes the focus on event outcome as the only driver of action. This has resulted in a safety culture that has full transparency as employees, and businesses are no longer consumed with simply reporting numbers of days without injuries. Additionally to this, Huber has incorporated leading indicators that account for 80% of its safety performance scores, with the High Energy Incident rate accounting for only 20%
Learning and Leadership Development
- Don has chaired Huber’s biennial Global Sustainability Summit, which represents Huber’s largest single business meeting. Spanning 3 ½ days, with attendance by 300 employees, Board members, family (owners), customers, and external sustainability thought leaders, these summits focus on how sustainability is embedded in Huber’s overall business strategy. The summits include keynote leadership team remarks supplemented by multi-day, customized workshops designed to inform and educate all Huber stakeholders on their role in achieving Huber’s sustainability objectives
- The Huber EHS&S team recognized that leadership behavior was a key driver for affecting a high-performing safety culture. When Don discussed this with the CEO, he recognized that the objective of training more effective leaders should apply across the company in all functional areas. Don engaged with a team to customize a leadership development program to equip people with Inspiring, Engaging, Influencing, and Challenging skills. A training team of 8 EHS&S and HR people then executed a global training program at all Huber locations around the world. This program has created a leadership culture that has subsequently contributed to record levels of safety and business performance
- Benchmarking and networking are hallmarks of Don’s pursuit of elevated performance and continuous learning within Huber and through best practice sharing with peers. This is reflected in his consistent participation and leadership in NAEM sessions through other industry trade groups such as Sustainability 50, The Conference Board ESG Forum, and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development