Estée Lauder Companies Names First Chief Sustainability Officer

The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. has appointed Nancy Mahon, previously senior vice president, global corporate citizenship and sustainability, to serve as the company’s first chief sustainability officer, effective immediately.

Mahon will continue to report to Fabrizio Freda, president and CEO, and William P. Lauder, executive chairman and serve on the company’s executive leadership team.

As the company’s first CSO, Mahon will continue to focus on the strategic integration and implementation of ELC’s sustainability initiatives, as well as ESG reporting across the organization. She will also continue to serve as Executive Director of The Estée Lauder Companies’ Charitable Foundation. Nancy will also remain a member of ELC’s ESG Management Committee.

“Sustainability has long been central to how The Estée Lauder Companies and its brands have operated, and is a key part of our corporate strategy,” said Fabrizio. “We are committed to continuously evolving to drive our sustainability initiatives forward and helping to innovate and connect at both local and global levels, ultimately positioning us well to succeed in a changing global economy. Appointing Nancy to Chief Sustainability Officer is an example of our company’s ambition and focus on these initiatives.”

“Now more than ever, we have a responsibility to help drive progress, and we are dedicated to our sustainability initiatives throughout the value chain,” said Lauder. “Nancy is a trusted leader with a track record of winning results, and we look forward to her continued success as chief sustainability officer.”

Appointed SVP, global citizenship and sustainability in 2014, Mahon has collaborated with leaders across ELC to develop a strategy for ELC’s climate and environmental initiatives, with a focus that includes energy, emissions, packaging, and ingredient traceability.

Under Mahon’s leadership in this capacity, the company has extended its efforts to reduce environmental impacts across operations and throughout the value chain. Notably, ELC has focused on addressing climate change through targets to help reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and has implemented strategies to help minimize waste generation and disposal and water use. Moving forward, ELC’s sustainability strategy will continue to focus on innovative solutions to gain efficiencies and reduce impact at various stages of our products’ life cycles.

Mahon's MAC Tenure

Mahon joined ELC as VP, MAC Cosmetics and executive director of MAC AIDS Fund (now known as the MAC Viva Glam Fund) in 2006 for philanthropy in this initiative. In recognition of MAC’s proven leadership for this cause, Mahon was appointed by President Obama as chair of the president’s advisory council on HIV/AIDS in 2011.

Mahaon was promoted to SVP, MAC Cosmetics, in 2009. In 2011, she was named SVP for philanthropy and social initiatives, assuming responsibility for cause-marketing programs for Bobbi Brown, Jo Malone London and La Mer, in addition to MAC

Outside of ELC, Mahon has served as private delegate to the UN Commission on Women and is a founding member of the National Institute of Medicine’s Forum on Global Private Public Partnerships.