VP, Corporate Responsibility & Sustainability
Company Overview
Come grow with us! We are One Rayonier, a team that works together to create value by prioritizing safety, challenging the status quo, giving back to our communities, and driving innovation through continuous learning. With nearly 100 years of experience, we’re still discovering new ways to make lives better with our trees, our land, and — our most important resource — our people.
At Rayonier, we strive to create an employee experience where you feel valued and proud to be part of our team. We foster a respectful, inclusive and collaborative environment that celebrates your unique talents and perspectives. Experience the Rayonier difference: We’re big enough to offer exciting career paths, but small enough for you to know your colleagues by name. Come join a team that empowers you to make a difference!
Are you a strategic leader who excels at embedding environmental, social, and governance (ESG) principles into corporate culture? Do you have a passion for shaping a long-term sustainability vision and delivering transparent, compelling corporate narratives? We are seeking a Vice President of Corporate Responsibility & Sustainability to lead our comprehensive ESG strategy. In this role, you will shape and advance the organization’s enterprise-wide sustainability strategy, ensuring tight alignment with overall business objectives while driving long-term value creation.
How You Will Contribute
Reporting to the SVP, Chief Sustainability Officer, you will drive our success across several critical areas:
Strategic Executive Leader: Translate enterprise goals into clear priorities, targets, and governance structures that drive measurable ESG outcomes.
Sustainability Champion: Integrate net-zero climate strategies and forest certification standards into our core business strategy, leveraging them as drivers of timberland asset value and long-term differentiation.
Governance & Compliance Monitor: Assess emerging global regulations, disclosure requirements, and industry standards, recommending proactive policies to safeguard long-term business resilience.
Collaborative Advisor & Storyteller: Steward the company's sustainability narrative to ensure credible messaging across public and investor channels, while acting as a trusted advisor to executive leadership and the Board.
Key Accountabilities
Forest Certification & Sustainability Leadership
What You Bring to the Team
Education: A Bachelor’s degree in sustainability, environmental science, business, communications, corporate responsibility, or a related field. An advanced degree or relevant professional certifications are preferred.
Experience: A minimum of twelve (12) years of progressive experience in sustainability, corporate responsibility, environmental strategy, natural capital, or conservation finance, including demonstrated executive-level leadership. Proven experience advising senior executives and Boards of Directors on sustainability risks, opportunities, and disclosures.
Technical Skills & Reporting Frameworks: Deep understanding of sustainability reporting frameworks (e.g., ISSB, GRI, TCFD, TNFD, CDP), climate/environmental metrics, regulatory trends, and data assurance practices. Familiarity with forest certification standards (SFI, FSC), working forests, and natural capital or carbon market mechanisms. Strong oversight of systems and processes for collecting, validating, and analyzing complex data.
Strategic Mindset & Professional Influence: Exceptional strategic thinking, leadership presence, communication, and influence skills, with the proven ability to drive alignment and accountability across a complex organization.
We invite you to apply if you bring a deep background in climate risks, forest certification, and sustainability frameworks, alongside a track record of advising senior executives and Board directors.
If you are ready to drive accountability across a complex organization and shape the sustainable future of our enterprise, we want to hear from you.
Working Conditions And Physical Requirements
This role is primarily office-based with extended periods of computer use and sitting. This position requires significant domestic and international travel (estimated 50–60%) to support executive engagement, stakeholder meetings, site visits, and external representation.
What We Offer
Come grow with us! We are One Rayonier, a team that works together to create value by prioritizing safety, challenging the status quo, giving back to our communities, and driving innovation through continuous learning. With nearly 100 years of experience, we’re still discovering new ways to make lives better with our trees, our land, and — our most important resource — our people.
At Rayonier, we strive to create an employee experience where you feel valued and proud to be part of our team. We foster a respectful, inclusive and collaborative environment that celebrates your unique talents and perspectives. Experience the Rayonier difference: We’re big enough to offer exciting career paths, but small enough for you to know your colleagues by name. Come join a team that empowers you to make a difference!
Are you a strategic leader who excels at embedding environmental, social, and governance (ESG) principles into corporate culture? Do you have a passion for shaping a long-term sustainability vision and delivering transparent, compelling corporate narratives? We are seeking a Vice President of Corporate Responsibility & Sustainability to lead our comprehensive ESG strategy. In this role, you will shape and advance the organization’s enterprise-wide sustainability strategy, ensuring tight alignment with overall business objectives while driving long-term value creation.
How You Will Contribute
Reporting to the SVP, Chief Sustainability Officer, you will drive our success across several critical areas:
Strategic Executive Leader: Translate enterprise goals into clear priorities, targets, and governance structures that drive measurable ESG outcomes.
Sustainability Champion: Integrate net-zero climate strategies and forest certification standards into our core business strategy, leveraging them as drivers of timberland asset value and long-term differentiation.
Governance & Compliance Monitor: Assess emerging global regulations, disclosure requirements, and industry standards, recommending proactive policies to safeguard long-term business resilience.
Collaborative Advisor & Storyteller: Steward the company's sustainability narrative to ensure credible messaging across public and investor channels, while acting as a trusted advisor to executive leadership and the Board.
Key Accountabilities
Forest Certification & Sustainability Leadership
- Oversee forest certification, chain of custody, and traceability programs (e.g., SFI, FSC, EUDR), including all internal and external audits.
- Support initiatives related to climate change mitigation, biodiversity, conservation, habitat protection, and restoration.
- Monitor evolving wood products sustainability standards, including Life Cycle Assessments (LCA), Environmental Product Declarations (EPD), and green building codes.
- Provide executive oversight into sustainability reporting frameworks (e.g., GRI, IFRS, TNFD), regulatory filings, and external disclosures.
- Direct the measurement of key sustainability metrics, including forest carbon removals, natural capital, and Scope 1, 2, and 3 greenhouse gas emissions.
- Lead climate-related risk analyses and integrate findings into enterprise risk management (ERM) while continually improving systems to secure favorable third-party ratings (e.g., ISS, Sustainalytics, CDP).
- Partner with Operations, Legal, HR, Investor Relations, Communications, Safety, and Public Affairs to embed ESG into day-to-day strategic decision-making.
- Represent the company as the primary face of sustainability with external stakeholders, including investors, rating organizations, regulators, and community partners.
- Build organizational capability and drive accountability for ESG metrics across all business units.
What You Bring to the Team
Education: A Bachelor’s degree in sustainability, environmental science, business, communications, corporate responsibility, or a related field. An advanced degree or relevant professional certifications are preferred.
Experience: A minimum of twelve (12) years of progressive experience in sustainability, corporate responsibility, environmental strategy, natural capital, or conservation finance, including demonstrated executive-level leadership. Proven experience advising senior executives and Boards of Directors on sustainability risks, opportunities, and disclosures.
Technical Skills & Reporting Frameworks: Deep understanding of sustainability reporting frameworks (e.g., ISSB, GRI, TCFD, TNFD, CDP), climate/environmental metrics, regulatory trends, and data assurance practices. Familiarity with forest certification standards (SFI, FSC), working forests, and natural capital or carbon market mechanisms. Strong oversight of systems and processes for collecting, validating, and analyzing complex data.
Strategic Mindset & Professional Influence: Exceptional strategic thinking, leadership presence, communication, and influence skills, with the proven ability to drive alignment and accountability across a complex organization.
We invite you to apply if you bring a deep background in climate risks, forest certification, and sustainability frameworks, alongside a track record of advising senior executives and Board directors.
If you are ready to drive accountability across a complex organization and shape the sustainable future of our enterprise, we want to hear from you.
Working Conditions And Physical Requirements
This role is primarily office-based with extended periods of computer use and sitting. This position requires significant domestic and international travel (estimated 50–60%) to support executive engagement, stakeholder meetings, site visits, and external representation.
What We Offer
- We offer a comprehensive benefits package including medical, dental, vision, life, accident, disability, identity theft protection, and paid parental and caregiver leave. We also offer a health savings account, a dependent care spending account, and an employee assistance plan. We provide wellness reimbursements, employee discount programs, annual health screenings, wellness incentives, wellness seminars, and financial counseling and planning tools.
- Our 401(k) retirement savings plan includes company matching contributions (60% match on the first 6% of base and bonus deferrals) as well as a 3% enhanced retirement contribution that does not require an employee contribution.
- We recognize the importance of work-life integration and offer flexible work schedules and hybrid work from home options (for most positions), along with a minimum of three weeks paid vacation, five paid personal days, 11 paid holidays and paid sick leave each year.
- We provide a comprehensive employee development program which provides career planning tools and resources, mentoring program, leadership development, training programs and an 80% tuition reimbursement.