Manager – Circularity - Avoided Resource Use

The World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) is a global community of over 225 of the world’s leading businesses driving systems transformation for a better world in which 9+ billion people can live well, within planetary boundaries, by mid-century. Together, we transform the systems we work in to limit the impact of the climate crisis, restore nature, and tackle inequality.  

We accelerate value chain transformation across key sectors and reshape the financial system to reward sustainable leadership and action through a lower cost of capital. Through the exchange of best practices, improving performance, accessing education, forming partnerships, and shaping the policy agenda, we drive progress in businesses and sharpen the accountability of their performance.

Role overview
Lead the development and adoption of the Global Circularity Protocol (GCP) v2.0, with a focus on Avoided Resource use to develop an intervention-based assessment module for systemic circularity impact. The role will define how the systemic benefits of circular products, business models and solutions can be credibly measured, calculated and reported as resources or material use avoided, and will turn this into a practical module and implementation guidance within GCP v2.0 that companies, standards bodies, investors, and the disclosure community can use and trust. Engage in the broader GCP development and adoption pipeline to strengthen its methodology and implementation.

The Manager will work with pioneering WBCSD members, technical experts and partners to test the Avoided Resource use approach at product-, portfolio-, and entity-level and leverage existing intervention-based methodologies in context of avoided emissions for methodological progress on materials and resource use. The role will manage delivery of the GCP module, coordinate contributors and work with WBCSD colleagues in building alignment with the sustainability standards and disclosure community, supporting recognition and adoption of the GCP as a standalone asset and/or complementing existing global standards. The Avoided Resources module is one of the two priority modules of GCP v2.0, alongside Risk and Investment.
The role sits within the GCP v2.0 programme, reports to the Director, Climate and Circularity, and works closely with the Senior Manager, Circularity and Resource Security, who leads the risk and Investment, pollution and toxicity, and sector modules and holds the delivery plan across GCP modules.

Key responsibilities

• Lead the avoided resource use deep dive of GCP v2.0 from planning through delivery, managing scope, quality, milestones, resources, budgets, risks and dependencies as relevant.
• Work closely with the Senior Manager, who leads the GCP v2.0 programme overall, and with the Associates in the team, to align the avoided resource use module’s scope, methodology and timetable with the risk and investment, pollution and toxicity, and sector modules, and deliver it successfully by the end of 2027.
• Coordinate the implementation/testing, review and refinement of the avoided resource use approach with relevant companies and value-chain stakeholders, and align it with GCP v2.0 modules as well as emerging impact accounting and disclosure frameworks. Produce practitioner guides and case studies to illustrate the value-add and support first-movers in implementing the concept.
• Analyse existing approaches to avoided resource use, avoided emissions, consequential impact accounting, resource efficiency and circularity measurement to identify points of alignment, material differences, gaps and opportunities for greater consistency with the GCP and broader standards landscape.
• Scope and develop a technically robust and practical avoided resource use module for GCP v2.0, setting out principles,  guardrails, system boundaries, baselines, cut-off rules, calculation approaches and reporting guidance that strengthen credibility, prevent double counting, and provide decision-level outputs for companies and investors.
• Translate technical evidence, member needs and market developments into clear methodologies, recommendations, implementation guidance and priorities that business users can apply.
• Convene and guide pioneering member companies, standards organizations, assurance providers, technical experts and other partners, clarifying expectations, responsibilities and decisions to maintain delivery momentum.
• Establish proportionate governance, reporting and project controls, ensuring that risks, issues, dependencies, performance, evidence and decisions are managed transparently.
• Support the Director and the Senior Manager in engagement with standard setters, reporting and disclosure community by providing technical substance on avoided resource use.
• Represent the work in external engagement at key events, and with partner organizations across industry, policy and finance

Essential skills, knowledge and experience

• Strong knowledge of circular economy, circularity measurement, avoided resource use, sustainability accounting and disclosure, resource efficiency, materials accounting, ESG standards and related fields.
• Understanding of methodologies for quantifying avoided resource use and avoided impacts, including baseline and counterfactual setting, system boundaries, attribution and double counting, and how these relate to emerging approaches in related fields.
• Experience conducting comparative analysis of technical standards, methodologies or data frameworks and translating findings into practical recommendations.
• Demonstrated experience leading complex technical programmes or framework-development processes from planning through implementation.
• Understanding of product-level and portfolio-level sustainability data, corporate reporting and disclosure frameworks, including how technical frameworks achieve recognition and adoption.
• Experience engaging companies in a multi-stakeholder setup, and collaborating with standards organizations, disclosure organizations, assurance providers, technical experts and other stakeholders, including at senior level.
• Strong programme management skills, including planning, governance, risk management, quality assurance and coordination across interdependent deep dives.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to explain complex technical concepts clearly to specialist and non-specialist audiences.
• Experience working in an international, cross-sector or member-based organization would be an advantage.
• At least 5 years of relevant professional experience in technical analysis, methodology development, sustainability measurement and disclosure, standards or programme delivery, including operating with autonomy and guiding contributors.
• Experience leading (functional) teams would be an advantage
• Fluency in written and spoken English; additional languages such as French or Japanese are an advantage.
• A relevant university degree or equivalent professional experience in sustainability accounting and disclosure, circular economy, environmental science, engineering, economics, business or a related discipline.

The position is fixed-term, based in our Amsterdam or London Office, and requires international travel.

WBCSD is a purpose-driven organization that values diversity across gender, nationalities, and professional backgrounds. Headquartered in Geneva, with offices in Amsterdam, London, Singapore, Wuhan, Chicago, and New York.

What we offer

• Generous Time Off to Recharge: In addition to 25 days of paid holiday, you will have extra time off on your birthday and one cultural or religious celebration day. In addition, the option to buy up to 5 additional days each year for even more flexibility.
• Hybrid & Flexible Work: Work from the office a few days a week and from home the rest, with flexible hours to fit personal needs.
• Supported Hybrid Work: Financial support to set up your home office with essentials like a screen, headset, and desk for home work days
• Mobility/Transport: We offer an annual contribution towards public transportation or other soft mobility options.
• A Pension scheme: Our comprehensive pension scheme allows you to invest in your future.
• Learning and Development: Free access to LinkedIn Learning, and the possibility to engage in other training opportunities.