Sandy Eapen, Founder

Sustainability/ESG Advisor & Fractional Executive

I believe that business can be a force for good and has a critical role in helping address big societal and environmental challenges.

I am especially inspired by connecting with people, traveling the world, and being in nature. 

About Me

Diverse, global sector + industry experience

I have diverse impact-oriented career experiences over the last 20+ years and bring both a business-minded and analytical approach to global impact:

  • Executive Success Coach for Sustainability Leadership Program - UT-Austin McCombs School of Business, Executive Education & ESG Instructor at UT-Arlington (CURRENT)

  • First Head of ESG & Sustainability at Coupa Software, where I launched, built, and advanced ESG program

  • Corporate Sustainability Consultant at BSR - a leading ESG/corporate sustainability consultancy and network; Advised over 20 Fortune 300 companies on ESG strategy, stakeholder engagement, responsible investing, and served as a lead to oversee grant to set up Renewable Energy Buyers’ Alliance (now CEBA) as a nonprofit entity

  • International Development / Sustainable Business Consultant at UN Development Programme - designed and launched market-based solar lantern business model in rural villages of Malawi and Tanzania and advanced a Public-Private-Community biofuel partnership in India

  • Director, Strategy & Business Planning / Chief of Staff at American Express for a senior executive and partnered with CSR team to launch a sustainable business committee

  • Six Sigma Black Belt / Chemical Engineer at Dow - led significant energy reduction projects in manufacturing plants

  • Full-time Pro-Bono Marketing Consultant for GreenNYC, an initiative of NYC’s Mayor’s Office for Long-Term Planning & Sustainability to encourage New Yorkers to be sustainable

  • Management Consultant at BearingPoint and other organizations

Values

Teamwork.

Integrity.

Respect for Others.

Personal Growth.

Sustainability.

Traits

Results+Impact-oriented.

Collaborative.

Change agent.

Connector.

Good humored.

My perspectives for impact have been shaped from growing up as a child of Kerala-Indian immigrants,  traveling to 55+ countries, volunteering, and living in NYC, San Francisco, and Texas as well as abroad in India, Tanzania, and Malawi.

I have an MBA & Master of International Affairs from Columbia University and a B.S. Chemical Engineering from The University of Texas at Austin. I serve on the nonprofit boards of Asian Family Support Services of Austin and the Texas Exes Sustainability Alumni Network. I’ve previously served on advisory boards for Literacy, Inc. and American Red Cross.

Past Thought Leadership

  • Blog: “This Earth Day & Every Day, Taking Action on Climate Change is Our Collective Responsibility,” Coupa, 2022

  • Blog: “Building a Leading Corporate Sustainability Program at Coupa,” Coupa, 2021

  • Blog: “Corporate Sustainability at Coupa: Tapping Into the Power of Spend and Our Community,” Coupa, 2020

  • Blog: “Four Sustainability Management Trends and Opportunities in the Banking Sector,” BSR, 2018

  • Blog: “How to Build Effective Sustainability Governance Structures,” BSR, 2017

  • Blog: “Advancing Women’s Empowerment in the Financial Services Sector,” BSR, 2016

  • Publication: “Off-grid energy services for the poor: LED lighting in Malawi,” Energy Policy 38, 2010