Why Sustainability Fails at the Decision Level

6 Jan

Every year, leadership teams set ambitious sustainability targets. Net-zero roadmaps. ESG commitments. Purpose statements approved at board level.

And yet, many of these initiatives stall.

Not because decision-makers lack intent, resources, or intelligence, but because intentions are mistaken for execution.

This is a classic behavioural science problem known as the Intention-Action Gap: the disconnect between strategic ambition and operational reality. It’s the same phenomenon behind failed New Year’s resolutions, just with higher stakes, larger budgets, and reputational risk.

At Colectivo, we work with organisations that care deeply about sustainability but struggle to turn strategy into consistent behaviour across teams, systems, and processes. The issue is rarely motivation. It’s design.

The Intention-Action Gap in Organisations

The Intention-Action Gap describes what happens when strong goals are not supported by the structures required to deliver them.

For individuals, it sounds like: “I’ll go to the gym more.”

For organisations, it sounds like:

“We aim to reduce our environmental impact.”
“Sustainability is a core strategic priority.”

These statements signal intent, but they do not specify who does what, when, or how success is measured.

In complex organisations, behaviour does not change because of vision statements. It changes when incentives, workflows, and decision environments are aligned with that vision.

Why Good Strategy Still Fails

From a behavioural science perspective, sustainability initiatives often fail for predictable reasons:

1. Cognitive Load at the Leadership and Team Level

Decision-makers and employees operate under constant pressure. When sustainability adds complexity rather than reducing it, it is deprioritised, even if it is valued.

2. Misaligned Incentives

If performance metrics, bonuses, or KPIs do not reflect sustainability goals, behaviour will follow what is rewarded, not what is said.

3. Friction in Systems and Processes

If sustainable choices require extra steps, approvals, or effort, teams default to existing practices.

4. Weak Accountability

When ownership is unclear, sustainability becomes everyone’s responsibility, which often means no one’s.

Behaviour follows systems. Not intentions.

Turning Sustainability into a Business Process

Closing the Intention-Action Gap requires treating sustainability as a decision design challenge, not a communications one.

Three elements are critical:

1. Structures

Clear governance, defined roles, and decision rights that embed sustainability into how the organisation operates, from procurement to product design.

2. Accountability Systems

Named owners, regular reporting cycles, and leadership-level oversight that make progress visible and non-optional.

3. Operational Processes

Repeatable workflows that translate sustainability goals into day-to-day decisions, reducing reliance on individual discretion.

This is how sustainability moves from strategy decks to operational reality.

Why SMART Goals Matter for Leaders

Broad ambitions are necessary, but insufficient.

SMART goals help decision-makers translate intent into execution by making objectives:

Specific: What exactly will change?
Measurable: How will progress be tracked and reviewed?
Achievable: Is this realistic given current constraints?
Relevant: Does this align with core business priorities?
Time-bound: When will results be assessed?

For example:

“We want to reduce emissions.”

versus

“By Q4 2025, we will reduce Scope 2 emissions by 15% by transitioning all European offices to renewable energy contracts, with quarterly progress reviews reported to the executive team.”

The second creates clarity, accountability, and momentum, all prerequisites for behaviour change at scale.

Designing for Consistency, Not Symbolism

Effective sustainability leadership is not about bold announcements. It’s about reducing friction, aligning incentives, and enabling teams to act by default.

When organisations:

design systems around real behavioural constraints,
embed sustainability into decision-making processes,
and measure what actually happens,

they move from symbolic commitment to measurable impact.

Build Capability, Not Just Commitment

If you are responsible for sustainability, strategy, or transformation, the challenge is no longer why sustainability matters, it’s how to make it stick.

Our course, Behaviour Change in Sustainability, is designed for leaders and teams who want to apply behavioural science to real organisational decisions.

You’ll learn how to: