Laura is a global expert on corporate sustainability, with two decades of experience in strategy consulting and has advised senior executives at global companies across a range of industry sectors and sustainability issues.
As Chief Impact Officer (CIO), the first in the organization’s 30-year history, Laura focuses on maximizing the impact of BSR’s work with its network of over 300 members, both through direct engagement on project work and as a mentor for teams throughout the organization. She also oversees BSR’s collaborative initiatives and the Center for Business and Social Justice, and a recognized thought leader and innovator in strategic business.
She has been an instrumental leader in BSR’s organizational growth and impact. She launched BSR’s financial services practice and New York office, and she served as Chief Operating Officer for five years, leveraging her strengths in strategy, organizational change, and people management. Laura works with leading global companies to develop and enhance their sustainability strategies to maximize value for business and society, and she is sought after to facilitate senior-level strategy workshops and multi-stakeholder collaborations.
She previously worked for Deloitte Consulting, where she acquired extensive strategy experience advising multinational financial services companies. She also worked on several community and economic development projects in Latin America.
Laura holds a MBA from Stanford University and a BS in Industrial and Labor Relations from Cornell University. She is an adjunct professor in the Bard MBA in Sustainability program, a Senior Fellow at the Center for the Advancement of Social Entrepreneurship (CASE) at Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business, and a member of the UN Global Compact Expert Network.
Insights From Laura Gitman
- Racing Past the Crossroads: How Sustainability Leaders Can Reassert Ambition / October 31, 2024 / Blog
- Frankly Speaking #59, Laura Gitman: Which Future for Sustainability Leadership in the Company? / Frankly Speaking Podcast / October 30, 2024 / News
- The CSO at a Crossroads: Three Paths Forward for Sustainability Leaders / October 17, 2024 / Reports
- ESG Scenarios: Leading Sustainability in a New Context / July 18, 2023 / Blog
- BSR Appoints Laura Gitman as First Ever Chief Impact Officer, Matthew Welch as New Chief Operating Officer / May 17, 2023 / News
- Key Ways for Business to Respond to the Fall of Roe v. Wade / June 24, 2022 / Blog
- What is Greenwashing? / BBC News / January 26, 2022 / News
- Building the Future Starts Now: Reflections from BSR Conference 2020 / October 28, 2020 / Blog
- Healthy Business Coalition’s Eight-Point Action Plan for Reopening / July 23, 2020 / Blog
- How Sustainability Teams Can Meet the Moment / April 6, 2020 / Blog
- The State of Sustainable Business 2019: Toward a Critical Decade / November 12, 2019 / Blog
- Can Global GoalsCast Save the Planet? / Global GoalsCast / September 24, 2019 / News
- Key Considerations in Managing ESG through a Merger / July 9, 2019 / Reports
- Mergers Are Coming: How to Manage ESG through the M&A Process / July 9, 2019 / Blog
- The State—and Future—of Sustainable Business in 2018 / September 18, 2018 / Blog
- Corporations as Citizens: Have We Come Full Circle? / March 27, 2018 / Blog
- How Do We Measure the Impact of Our Membership? / November 20, 2017 / Blog
- Our Theory of Change: The Rationale Behind BSR’s Open Membership Policy / November 15, 2017 / Blog
- Business Stepping Up: Consulting for Change / Huffington Post / November 13, 2017 / News
- Top 10 Reasons to Be a BSR Member / November 6, 2017 / Blog
- Embedding Inclusive Growth in Business Decisions: A Framework for Companies and Investors / October 26, 2017 / Blog
- The State of Sustainable Business in 2017: Results from the Ninth Annual BSR/GlobeScan Survey / July 25, 2017 / Blog
- Activist Investors and the Rise of Short-Termism 2.0 / June 21, 2017 / Blog
- When the Business Case and Shared Value Aren’t Enough / February 6, 2017 / Blog
- Reflections on the BSR Member Spotlight Series: A Conversation with BSR Vice President Laura Gitman / October 26, 2016 / Blog
- The State of Sustainable Business in 2016: Results from the BSR/GlobeScan Survey / October 11, 2016 / Blog
- Three Answers to Three Questions on How Inclusive Business Will Help Achieve SDGs / Guardian Sustainable Business / October 4, 2016 / News
- The Climate-Change Challenge for Leaders / The Globe and Mail / March 9, 2016 / News
- Survey on Business Sustainability / Yale Climate Connections / December 14, 2015 / News
- Heineken USA Reduces Carbon Emissions with BSR’s Clean Cargo Working Group / Environmental Leader / December 10, 2015 / News
- Women at Work: Maximizing Profits Ethically / CCTV America / November 20, 2015 / News
- Major Corporations Taking Climate Change Threat More Seriously—Survey / Guardian Sustainable Business / October 2, 2015 / News
- Results from the BSR/GlobeScan Survey 2015: Business Leaders’ Perspectives on Climate, Global Goals / September 30, 2015 / Blog
- What Does It Take to Be a Resilient Business Leader? / June 24, 2015 / Blog
- The Middle Management Challenge in Sustainability Progress / June 8, 2015 / Blog
- Breakthroughs in Stakeholder Engagement / April 2, 2015 / Blog
- Six Success Factors to Improve Access to Healthcare / November 4, 2014 / Blog
- BSR/GlobeScan State of Sustainable Business Survey 2014 / October 29, 2014 / Blog
- Six Things I Have Learned about Collaboration for Sustainability / July 21, 2014 / Blog
- BSR Membership Benefits: Enhancing Value and Collaboration / April 16, 2014 / Blog
- To Drive Sustainability, Look Inward: Results from the BSR/GlobeScan Survey 2013 / October 30, 2013 / Blog
- Network-Based Change: An Insider’s Perspective / September 17, 2013 / Blog
- Four Ways to Attract Long-Term Investors / August 21, 2012 / Blog
- Responsible Private Equity? / June 8, 2011 / Blog
- Trends in Sustainable Investment / February 14, 2011 / Blog
- ESG in the Mainstream / October 13, 2009 / Blog
- The Value of Using Environmental, Social, and Governance Criteria in Mainstream Investing / September 15, 2009 / Blog