Description

Green Consultants

Description - summary of the module content

Module description

With a greater requirement than ever before for businesses to engage with sustainability in every aspect of their vision and operation, the ability for industry to attract staff and customers, remain profitable and still competitively deliver products and services is fast becoming a real challenge. Acting as trainee consultants you will learn how to interact and consult with professionals, and how to help businesses and organisations engage with environmental sustainability in different areas of their work and improve their practice. You will help to introduce strategies to manage resources more effectively, positively affect the environment and articulate sustainability as core value. The module reflects the interdisciplinary nature of research on the campus and is complimentary to a variety of other modules that focus on the environment more widely.

Module aims - intentions of the module

The aim of this module is to enable students who have an interest in working in the environment and sustainability sector to develop the transferable skill sets required, through an online learning process before embarking on work experience with a relevant organisation. You will gain an invaluable experience of the sector and develop a range of transferable career skills.

As a trainee consultant you will learn how to identify the potential improvements in sustainability as well as develop skill sets essential to a behaviour change agent. Moreover, as this programme is business-orientated, professional, business and commercial awareness skills will also be further developed. Understanding and learning how to affect sustainable change in a business is another key part. The Green Consultants programme provides you with an amazing opportunity to develop your CV and build a greater understanding of this field of work. It includes online training approved by the Green Consultants Industry Advisory Group You will also undertake a skills audit to identify skills gaps a which is designed to give you.

• Greater awareness of what a Sustainability Consultant role can be.
• An awareness of application and selection methods for roles in the sector.
• Techniques for instigating organisational and behavioural change.
• Skills and knowledge to be effective change agents within organisations.
• Access to a support network of like-minded individuals passionate about creating environmental change.

You will also complete an industry led placement and a set research project or task brief that you will undertake whilst on placement. The findings of this will be presented to the employer as part of your assessment. Through this experience you will gain -

• Valuable experience and opportunities within the sustainability and environment sector
• The opportunity to influence how a business can implement more sustainable practices

This module provides you with an amazing opportunity to develop your CV and build a greater understanding of this field of work making this a very competitive programme.

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)

ILO: Module-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 1. Consult effectively with a client and develop a project brief
• 2. Select and utilise relevant tools for desired outcomes
• 3. Write a professional business report, and deliver a formal presentation of your project findings to senior stakeholders

ILO: Discipline-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 4. Identify and influence organisational and staff drivers
• 5. Describe the interaction of resources and products and the associated ecological rucksack
• 6. Understand the role of an environmental consultant in work environment
• 7. Apply research evidence to critically evaluate the role of an environmental consultant as part of a team
• 8. Explain how cause and effect of business processes impact on the use of resources

ILO: Personal and key skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 9. Work confidently with client employers via face-to-face and online meetings and e-mail etc. to set up a project / specific task with the end result of a detailed written business report.
• 10. Act professionally in a business setting via the delivery of formal presentations to senior campus staff and clients and interaction with Green Consultants programme officers
• 11. Create your own professional network and gain commercial awareness as part of the syllabus, networking opportunities and placement
• 12. Apply valuable insight on the recruitment and selection processes of industry
• 13. Develop your professional communication skills
• 14. Demonstrate an ability to reflect critically on practical experiences gained, and the impact they may have on your views and actions
• 15. Demonstrate independent learning ability and initiative, plus self-direction and originality in your work
• 16. Manage information with minimal guidance

Syllabus plan

Syllabus plan

Term 1

You will complete the Green Consultants online module this term, this will include;
• Consultancy practice
• How to be a sustainability consultant
• Working with a client
• Project management and working up a project brief
• Environmental assessment – EMS and ISO14001
• Conducting sustainability assessments
• Personalised learning for professional skills development
• Presenting your results and recommendations

You will also have the opportunity during this term to meet and network with industry professionals to grow your knowledge of the sector and roles within it. Thus, developing the skills that you will need to gain a placement of your choice. You will receive support from the Careers and Employability team with sessions on how to find and secure a placement, effective networking, professionalism in the workplace and career management skills such as writing a CV, covering letter, application form.

Identification of a placement. You will source a suitable industry-based placement, understanding and learning how to effect sustainable change in a business will be a key part. This requires you to start to use LinkedIn and other platforms to look for opportunities, explore the sector and establish professional networks. You will also be supported by one-to-one meetings held with the Academic Placement Tutor and the Careers and Employability Service. These bespoke meetings will be conducted with a view to allowing you to enhance your chance of gaining a suitable placement and making the most of the opportunity. You will also develop a CV tailored for the sustainability industry and increase your awareness of approaches to make the most of networking. Once you have secured a placement, you will agree with your employer a set research project or task brief that you will undertake whilst on placement. The findings of this will be presented to the employer as part of your assessment.
The placement will include contact hours to support the structuring of the placement project and the development of a project brief report and presentation and a reflective report. The placement will be 3-weeks in length (or equivalent) in and can commence from April with the 3 weeks completed prior to the end of July. Once the placement has been completed you will produce a reflective portfolio. The focus of this will be on detailing and evaluating your role within the multidisciplinary team, and the skills and professional competencies you gained from the experience.

Term 2

You will receive further support from the Careers and Employability team through 1-1 bespoke appointments to source your placement and prepare you for this. There will also be opportunities to network with industry professionals during the terms.

Placement
Your placement must be for a minimum of 105 hours and can be commenced from end of April onwards with 105 hours completed prior to the submission of the written report. The placement must have an environmental or sustainability focus. It can include working for a company that has a direct sustainability focus (e.g., The Met Office), or working with a company that has no direct sustainability focus, where you can set up or support a sustainability-related project, (e.g., working with a Charted Surveyor practice to reduce their waste and travel impacts).

Once the placement has been completed you then produce a written business report on the organisation and their sustainability contribution, detailing your role and the skills / experience you gained from the position.

Learning and teaching

Learning activities and teaching methods (given in hours of study time)

Details of learning activities and teaching methods

Assessment

Formative assessment

Summative assessment (% of credit)

Details of summative assessment

Re-assessment

Details of re-assessment (where required by referral or deferral)

Re-assessment notes

Deferral – if you miss an assessment for certificated reasons judged acceptable by the Mitigation Committee, you will normally be either deferred in the assessment or an extension may be granted. The mark given for a re-assessment taken as a result of deferral will not be capped and will be treated as it would be if it were your first attempt at the assessment.

Referral – if you have failed the module overall (i.e. a final overall module mark of less than 40%) you will be required to resubmit work as stipulated above. The mark given for a re-assessment taken as a result of referral will count for 100% of the final mark and will be capped at 40%.

The group final business report is neither referable nor deferrable because of the group nature of the work. If you fail or miss through mitigation this assessment, you will be required to submit an analysis of the group final business repor to the Green Consultants management team as necessary.

Resources

Indicative learning resources - Web based and electronic resources

• My Career Zone Resources– filter by CV, Applications, Assessment Centre etc
• My Career Zone Digital– online videos and training to support skills development
• Carbon Trust
• Supply Chain Sustainability School
• NAO Short Guide for Environmental Protection and Sustainability

The programme has a supporting ELE page offering additional learning as both pre-course reading and materials that support the three day training programme, your interactions with you clients, internship opportunities and recruitment and selection processes of the environmental sector.

Module has an active ELE page

Key words search

Green Consultants, work experience, consultancy, project brief, client, organisational analysis, change management, placement, internship, assessment centre, presenting results and recommendations, consulting, sustainability, environment, behaviour change