How can Strategy and Sustainability be Synergetic?

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My Sustainable Encounter with Rakesh Kumar Paliwal

by Albert Schiller

The Business of Long-Term Thinking

When we talk about sustainability in business, we usually imagine two separate tracks: one for growth, one for responsibility.

Rakesh Kumar Paliwal doesn’t split them.

As President and Head of both Strategy & Business Development and Sustainability & ESG at his company, he sits at the intersection, where what’s good for business must also be good for the future.

That phrase stayed with me. Fit for the future. Not just scalable. Not just compliant. Fit. It’s a mindset, and a structure.

Embedding Sustainability, Not Just Reporting It

Rakesh's day involves both building the business and setting guardrails for how that growth happens. He oversees market analysis, risk evaluation, stakeholder engagement, ESG alignment, and strategic reporting. He leads on everything from urban mining to circular economy practices.

And yet, his biggest challenge isn’t complexity. It’s culture.

“Balancing short-term objectives with long-term sustainability goals,” he said. “That’s the hardest part.”

It’s not about a lack of data. His team uses ENABLON, a global information management system, to measure and report performance. The real work is embedding sustainability into performance reviews, operational SOPs, and team-level decision-making. It's about building internal trust—because compliance only gets you so far.

“Companies that integrate sustainability into KPIs,” he said, “don’t just adapt—they lead.”

His leadership is steady. Grounded. Less about noise, more about alignment. And when I asked about advice for individuals, he didn’t offer anything dramatic. He offered what works:

Then came the line that still sticks with me:

“Educate yourself and others. Collective effort is essential.”

It reminded me that systemic change isn't only about what a company decides. It's also about what each person understands—and how that understanding spreads.

Rakesh isn’t waiting for perfect conditions. He’s building structure into movement. Holding tension between the market and the mission. And pushing for a kind of leadership that holds both.

Rakesh’s role shows us what sustainability looks like when it’s integrated—not added on.

Here’s how we can take that thinking into our own lives:

Being fit for the future isn’t about one big move. It’s about every daily decision that strengthens what we build.