As director of global environmental sustainability at LinkedIn, Peggy Brannigan has an ambitious remit: to help protect the planet and support green economic growth. Having previously worked with the likes of Google, Apple and even the U.S. Department of State on their sustainability strategies, Brannigan knows more than most about how to put an ambition like that into action.
I recently spoke with Brannigan to learn more about the three pillars of her role at LinkedIn, the critical role of soft skills and the exciting growth she’s seeing in green jobs. This interview has been edited for style and length.
Shannon Houde: What does a global head of environmental sustainability do every day in a tech company?
Peggy Brannigan: In the simplest terms, I work toward three high-level responsibilities. The first is to make sure LinkedIn is operating with environmental excellence. We were acquired by Microsoft a few years ago, and in 2020, LinkedIn joined Microsoft to make three big climate commitments. We will achieve carbon negative, water positive and zero waste operations by 2030. And even sooner, by 2025, we’ve pledged to use 100 percent clean energy all the time. It really is overwhelmingly ambitious. But because we know that we have resources that some other companies don’t. So, we felt we needed to go beyond “neutrality” to carbon negative and water positive. On my team there are a few amazing people who are tracking our impacts, and reporting them and collaborating internally to drive efficiencies in our workplaces and in our data centers. We are also working with our sourcing team to tackle the Scope 3 carbon footprint from our supplier relationships.
The second responsibility has to do with delivering sustainability solutions on our platform. This is very different but equally important, and where I’m spending more time now. My team is exploring “What are LinkedIn’s particular unique assets that we can use to accelerate climate action?” It’s a question that every company should ask, and the answer is going to be different for each company depending on their business model.
Of the fastest growing skills, half are technical skills. But the other half — and the further up in an organization you move, the more important they become — are what I would call soft skills.
At LinkedIn, our “superpowers” include our very large dataset about the global economy and our online platform and community. With LinkedIn’s anonymized data reflecting our 900 million members and millions of companies and job postings, our economist can see “where are the green job opportunities that are arising? What types of green skills are in demand? And where are the green skills gaps that need to be addressed geographically?” For example, last year, what do you think was the fastest growing green skill? It was sustainable fashion. We publish these data insights and share them with policymakers and business leaders and job seekers.
We can leverage our online platform to help other organizations and professionals “go green.” Our engineering team has created a Green Jobs Collection that we launched during Earth Month 2022. Everyone can tap into this collection as one way to find green work, which is not just sustainability job titles like mine; the collection includes ordinary jobs where the employer is looking for someone with green skills, to do that job in a green way. We’re also building a catalog of LinkedIn Learning courses for building green skills, with topics ranging from sustainable product design and supply chain management to ESG and green building.
A third part of my role is building external partnerships with nonprofits and governments. We want to elevate the visibility and reach of important partners and environmental thought leaders, especially those who are working to advance progress on environmental justice and equity issues. So earlier this year, we launched Top Green Voices from many countries. And that’s another resource that anyone can find and subscribe to on our platform.
Houde: One of the trends I’m seeing is less focus on “green jobs” and more integration of “green functions” into many job titles. Does that echo what you’re seeing?
Brannigan: Yes, in an ideal world, there won’t need to be a central sustainability team, because across every function it will be part of the core principles of how they operate. But we’re not there yet. When I took the role at LinkedIn, I had the incredible opportunity to grow LinkedIn’s sustainability program from the ground up. We have a small central team driving strategy and are embedding sustainability responsibility across other functions.
I think what’s typical is that you start with a focus on your own operations. You set science-based targets focused on what is most material for your company. If you’re in manufacturing, it’s different than if you’re in tech. Then the next best practice is to include your supply chain. And that’s because across the board for almost every company, the vast majority of the carbon footprint comes from Scope 3 emissions, and specifically the embodied carbon from the goods and services that we all procure.
As a customer, LinkedIn can nudge and incentivize the large suppliers that we buy from, and that’s a win-win. Then you engage with your customers around sustainability. At LinkedIn we’ve been investing in our own products and services to tweak them to provide sustainability solutions for our customers. From there, the circles of influence and opportunity just keep expanding.
Houde: With all the insight LinkedIn has, how do you see the sustainability jobs sector evolving?
Brannigan: Well, green jobs have been more resilient than jobs on average on the site. Green entrepreneurship also has grown faster than entrepreneurship generally on our site. You can find exceptions in different industries, but there’s a lot of opportunity for growth. There are regulators around the world requiring companies to report more and to take more action and show progress. Plus, there are rising demands from customers and activist investors. So, there are a lot of external forces that are creating incentives for companies to hold onto their sustainability function and grow it.
Anecdotally, from what we’re seeing at LinkedIn and Microsoft, the biggest immediate needs are for people who understand data collection, analytics, greenhouse gas accounting, water management, zero waste management and ESG reporting — all of those things that are linked to being able to measure, monitor, manage and report on environmental impact. Those technical skills are super marketable.
The other area we see staffing up is in sustainable supply chain management, and I think that will continue. Green building, too, has pretty strong momentum and of course, clean energy. Skills that involve driving efficiencies and implementing healthy and sustainable operations, those are marketable skills.
Houde: Is it fair to say that subject matter expertise isn’t the only skill that counts then?
Brannigan: Yes. There’s so much opportunity across a vast spectrum in terms of green work. You don’t have to come in as a scientist knowing greenhouse gas accounting. Of the fastest growing skills, half are technical skills. But the other half — and the further up in an organization you move, the more important they become — are what I would call soft skills.
Communication is critical. Being able to articulate verbally and in writing what is the business case of why we need to take action, and then being able to draw in an audience. Then there’s relationship building. By definition, these jobs are changemaker jobs. You’re asking people to do things differently than they used to and that’s uncomfortable, it creates friction and extra work, mentally and physically. And so those people who are the most effective sustainability leaders know how to enter into a new relationship by asking first, what is your priority? Authentically connecting with stakeholders, understanding their view and what their priorities are, that’s a critical skill.
Houde: And in terms of acquiring these skills, are there any platforms you’d recommend?
Brannigan: LinkedIn Learning’s sustainability courses is one place to start. The catalog has around 40 courses now but is growing. As for other sources, I can tell you what I did. When I was living in Europe 10 years ago, I took courses in person in England and online. Coursera has some really solid courses. The University of Chicago had a really nice set of courses around energy and circularity. The University of Lund in Sweden as well. Now I know there are lots of online offerings from universities in addition to courses available in your local city. I will add a teaser here: In April, we launched a Sustainability Resources Hub, which is a collection of resources to help professionals lead initiatives for their organizations.
Although no one likes a know-it-all, they dominate the Internet.
The Internet began as a vast repository of information. It quickly became a breeding ground for self-proclaimed experts seeking what most people desire: recognition and money.
Today, anyone with an Internet connection and some typing skills can position themselves, regardless of their education or experience, as a subject matter expert (SME). From relationship advice, career coaching, and health and nutrition tips to citizen journalists practicing pseudo-journalism, the Internet is awash with individuals—Internet talking heads—sharing their “insights,” which are, in large part, essentially educated guesses without the education or experience.
The Internet has become a 24/7/365 sitcom where armchair experts think they’re the star.
Not long ago, years, sometimes decades, of dedicated work and acquiring education in one’s field was once required to be recognized as an expert. The knowledge and opinions of doctors, scientists, historians, et al. were respected due to their education and experience. Today, a social media account and a knack for hyperbole are all it takes to present oneself as an “expert” to achieve Internet fame that can be monetized.
On the Internet, nearly every piece of content is self-serving in some way.
The line between actual expertise and self-professed knowledge has become blurry as an out-of-focus selfie. Inadvertently, social media platforms have created an informal degree program where likes and shares are equivalent to degrees. After reading selective articles, they’ve found via and watching some TikTok videos, a person can post a video claiming they’re an herbal medicine expert. Their new “knowledge,” which their followers will absorb, claims that Panda dung tea—one of the most expensive teas in the world and isn’t what its name implies—cures everything from hypertension to existential crisis. Meanwhile, registered dietitians are shaking their heads, wondering how to compete against all the misinformation their clients are exposed to.
More disturbing are individuals obsessed with evangelizing their beliefs or conspiracy theories. These people write in-depth blog posts, such as Elvis Is Alive and the Moon Landings Were Staged, with links to obscure YouTube videos, websites, social media accounts, and blogs. Regardless of your beliefs, someone or a group on the Internet shares them, thus confirming your beliefs.
Misinformation is the Internet’s currency used to get likes, shares, and engagement; thus, it often spreads like a cosmic joke. Consider the prevalence of clickbait headlines:
You Won’t Believe What Taylor Swift Says About Climate Change!
This Bedtime Drink Melts Belly Fat While You Sleep!
In One Week, I Turned $10 Into $1 Million!
Titles that make outrageous claims are how the content creator gets reads and views, which generates revenue via affiliate marketing, product placement, and pay-per-click (PPC) ads. Clickbait headlines are how you end up watching a TikTok video by a purported nutrition expert adamantly asserting you can lose belly fat while you sleep by drinking, for 14 consecutive days, a concoction of raw eggs, cinnamon, and apple cider vinegar 15 minutes before going to bed.
Our constant search for answers that’ll explain our convoluted world and our desire for shortcuts to success is how Internet talking heads achieve influencer status. Because we tend to seek low-hanging fruits, we listen to those with little experience or knowledge of the topics they discuss yet are astute enough to know what most people want to hear.
There’s a trend, more disturbing than spreading misinformation, that needs to be called out: individuals who’ve never achieved significant wealth or traded stocks giving how-to-make-easy-money advice, the appeal of which is undeniable. Several people I know have lost substantial money by following the “advice” of Internet talking heads.
Anyone on social media claiming to have a foolproof money-making strategy is lying. They wouldn’t be peddling their money-making strategy if they could make easy money.
Successful people tend to be secretive.
Social media companies design their respective algorithms to serve their advertisers—their source of revenue—interest; hence, content from Internet talking heads appears most prominent in your feeds. When a video of a self-professed expert goes viral, likely because it pressed an emotional button, the more people see it, the more engagement it receives, such as likes, shares and comments, creating a cycle akin to a tornado.
Imagine scrolling through your TikTok feed and stumbling upon a “scientist” who claims they can predict the weather using only aluminum foil, copper wire, sea salt and baking soda. You chuckle, but you notice his video got over 7,000 likes, has been shared over 600 times and received over 400 comments. You think to yourself, “Maybe this guy is onto something.” What started as a quest to achieve Internet fame evolved into an Internet-wide belief that weather forecasting can be as easy as DIY crafts.
Since anyone can call themselves “an expert,” you must cultivate critical thinking skills to distinguish genuine expertise from self-professed experts’ self-promoting nonsense. While the absurdity of the Internet can be entertaining, misinformation has serious consequences. The next time you read a headline that sounds too good to be true, it’s probably an Internet talking head making an educated guess; without the education seeking Internet fame, they can monetize.
TORONTO – A new survey says a majority of software engineers and developers feel tight project deadlines can put safety at risk.
Seventy-five per cent of the 1,000 global workers who responded to the survey released Tuesday say pressure to deliver projects on time and on budget could be compromising critical aspects like safety.
The concern is even higher among engineers and developers in North America, with 77 per cent of those surveyed on the continent reporting the urgency of projects could be straining safety.
The study was conducted between July and September by research agency Coleman Parkes and commissioned by BlackBerry Ltd.’s QNX division, which builds connected-car technology.
The results reflect a timeless tug of war engineers and developers grapple with as they balance the need to meet project deadlines with regulations and safety checks that can slow down the process.
Finding that balance is an issue that developers of even the simplest appliances face because of advancements in technology, said John Wall, a senior vice-president at BlackBerry and head of QNX.
“The software is getting more complicated and there is more software whether it’s in a vehicle, robotics, a toaster, you name it… so being able to patch vulnerabilities, to prevent bad actors from doing malicious acts is becoming more and more important,” he said.
The medical, industrial and automotive industries have standardized safety measures and anything they produce undergoes rigorous testing, but that work doesn’t happen overnight. It has to be carried out from the start and then at every step of the development process.
“What makes safety and security difficult is it’s an ongoing thing,” Wall said. “It’s not something where you’ve done it, and you are finished.”
The Waterloo, Ont.-based business found 90 per cent of its survey respondents reported that organizations are prioritizing safety.
However, when asked about why safety may not be a priority for their organization, 46 per cent of those surveyed answered cost pressures and 35 per cent said a lack of resources.
That doesn’t surprise Wall. Delays have become rampant in the development of tech, and in some cases, stand to push back the launch of vehicle lines by two years, he said.
“We have to make sure that people don’t compromise on safety and security to be able to get products out quicker,” he said.
“What we don’t want to see is people cutting corners and creating unsafe situations.”
The survey also took a peek at security breaches, which have hit major companies like London Drugs, Indigo Books & Music, Giant Tiger and Ticketmaster in recent years.
About 40 per cent of the survey’s respondents said they have encountered a security breach in their employer’s operating system. Those breaches resulted in major impacts for 27 per cent of respondents, moderate impacts for 42 per cent and minor impacts for 27 per cent.
“There are vulnerabilities all the time and this is what makes the job very difficult because when you ship the software, presumably the software has no security vulnerabilities, but things get discovered after the fact,” Wall said.
Security issues, he added, have really come to the forefront of the problems developers face, so “really without security, you have no safety.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 8, 2024.
As online shoppers hunt for bargains offered by Amazon during its annual fall sale this week, cybersecurity researchers are warning Canadians to beware of an influx of scammers posing as the tech giant.
In the 30 days leading up to Amazon’s Prime Big Deal Days, taking place Tuesday and Wednesday, there were more than 1,000 newly registered Amazon-related web domains, according to Check Point Software Technologies, a company that offers cybersecurity solutions.
The company said it deemed 88 per cent of those domains malicious or suspicious, suggesting they could have been set up by scammers to prey on vulnerable consumers. One in every 54 newly created Amazon-related domain included the phrase “Amazon Prime.”
“They’re almost indiscernible from the real Amazon domain,” said Robert Falzon, head of engineering at Check Point in Canada.
“With all these domains registered that look so similar, it’s tricking a lot of people. And that’s the whole intent here.”
Falzon said Check Point Research sees an uptick in attempted scams around big online shopping days throughout the year, including Prime Days.
Scams often come in the form of phishing emails, which are deceptive messages that appear to be from a reputable source in attempt to steal sensitive information.
In this case, he said scammers posing as Amazon commonly offer “outrageous” deals that appear to be associated with Prime Days, in order to trick recipients into clicking on a malicious link.
The cybersecurity firm said it has identified and blocked 100 unique Amazon Prime-themed scam emails targeting organizations and consumers over the past two weeks.
Scammers also target Prime members with unsolicited calls, claiming urgent account issues and requesting payment information.
“It’s like Christmas for them,” said Falzon.
“People expect there to be significant savings on Prime Day, so they’re not shocked that they see something of significant value. Usually, the old adage applies: If it seems too good to be true, it probably is.”
Amazon’s website lists a number of red flags that it recommends customers watch for to identify a potential impersonation scam.
Those include false urgency, requests for personal information, or indications that the sender prefers to complete the purchase outside of the Amazon website or mobile app.
Scammers may also request that customers exclusively pay with gift cards, a claim code or PIN. Any notifications about an order or delivery for an unexpected item should also raise alarm bells, the company says.
“During busy shopping moments, we tend to see a rise in impersonation scams reported by customers,” said Amazon spokeswoman Octavia Roufogalis in a statement.
“We will continue to invest in protecting consumers and educating the public on scam avoidance. We encourage consumers to report suspected scams to us so that we can protect their accounts and refer bad actors to law enforcement to help keep consumers safe.”
Falzon added that these scams are more successful than people might think.
As of June 30, the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre said there had been $284 million lost to fraud so far this year, affecting 15,941 victims.
But Falzon said many incidents go unreported, as some Canadians who are targeted do not know how or where to flag a scam, or may choose not to out of embarrassment.
Check Point recommends Amazon customers take precautions while shopping on Prime Days, including by checking URLs carefully, creating strong passwords on their accounts, and avoiding personal information being shared such as their birthday or social security number.
The cybersecurity company said consumers should also look for “https” at the beginning of a website URL, which indicates a secure connection, and use credit cards rather than debit cards for online shopping, which offer better protection and less liability if stolen.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 8, 2024.
