Max Van Biene
Head of ESG and Sustainability Strategy – ANZ AdvisoryMy role at Edge is a culmination of a somewhat varied career in strategic advisory. In my previous life as a strategist in the advertising industry, I gained an appreciation of the power of creative communication and engagement in driving behavior change and transforming corporate culture. I soon decided to use this expertise for good, accepting positions at various environmental and social sustainability consultancies. Over this time I’ve developed a suite of skills spanning corporate social responsibility strategy, sustainability program design, social impact measurement, strategic stakeholder engagement and best practice environmental data management & reporting. I’ve also been privileged to work in numerous subject areas such as conversation, resource management, land management, social and affordable housing, organisational change management.
I make it my mission to deliver strategies with clients rather than for them, assisting them to engage internal stakeholders and build internal capacity to ensure these strategies are implemented rather than sitting on a shelf gathering dust.
My favourite projects have been the those where I’ve worked closely with clients to co-design innovative solutions that ‘push the boundaries’ of their culture or deliver unexpected outcomes.
An example of this is the work I did with ANZ, designing a dedicated program aimed engaging employees and their supply chain to drive awareness of environmental sustainability and reduce their organisational footprint. This involved co-designing a governance structure, internal resourcing, an initiatives roadmap and messaging hierarchy.
I’m also very proud of the various environmental strategies I’ve delivered for Local Government, including the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Strategy for the Eastern Suburbs Councils, and the Environmental Sustainability Strategy for City of Parramatta Council, both of which have guides programs and policies at the city scale.
I completed BA (hons) in Media and Communications at Sydney University and later completed a Masters (MSc) of Sustainable Development at the University of Exeter in the UK. I have since gained many more degrees from the University of Life.
I work in sustainability because I truly believe in the power of business to enhance ecological and social wellbeing. All the tools are there, we just need to use them properly. I also really enjoy working with passionate people to solve really difficult challenges, so sustainability seemed like a good home for me.
In my spare time you can find me in, on or under the water. I sail surf, windsurf, kitesurf and scuba and hope one day to sail around the world.