• Kearney strengthens its sustainability leadership by appointing a COP26 Climate Champion with deep transport and retail decarbonization experience.
• The hire reflects rising client demand for execution-focused sustainability strategies across automotive, mobility, and consumer sectors under tightening regulatory pressure.
• The appointment positions Kearney to integrate sustainability more deeply into core consulting mandates as European and global climate targets accelerate.

Global management consultancy Kearney has appointed Angela Hultberg as Global Director within its sustainability team, reinforcing its push to embed climate strategy into mainstream corporate decision-making across transport, retail, and industrial sectors.

Hultberg joins Kearney following senior sustainability leadership roles in industry and public-private climate initiatives. Most recently, she served as Head of Sustainable Mobility at IKEA Retail, part of the Ingka Group, where she led efforts to cut emissions from co-worker and customer travel while advancing the company’s ambition for zero-emissions home deliveries.

From corporate targets to sector-wide transition

At IKEA, Hultberg worked at the intersection of consumer behavior, logistics, and infrastructure readiness, translating long-term climate commitments into operational targets across large, complex supply chains. Her work focused on reducing travel-related emissions while aligning mobility decisions with broader net-zero goals, an area where many multinational retailers continue to struggle.

Before joining IKEA, Hultberg built cross-sector experience at Scania AB and PwC, advising and operating across heavy transport, professional services, and sustainability strategy. In 2021, she was appointed Road Transport Lead for the COP26 Climate Champions team, where she helped accelerate decarbonization pathways for the global transport industry.

That role placed her at the center of policy, industry, and finance conversations during a critical phase for road transport, as governments and companies sought credible pathways to electrification, alternative fuels, and systems-level emissions reduction.

Expanding Kearney’s sustainability mandate

At Kearney, Hultberg will advise clients on sustainability strategy and adoption, with a focus on automotive, transport, and retail, while supporting broader managerial mandates tied to climate risk, regulatory compliance, and transformation delivery. Her appointment comes as consultancies face growing pressure to move beyond target-setting toward execution under increasingly stringent European and global climate frameworks.

The firm said the hire reflects the continued expansion of its sustainability practice, particularly in Europe, where regulatory scrutiny, investor expectations, and supply chain disclosures are converging.

Angela Hultberg, Global Director of Kearney’s Sustainability Team, said:
“I’m excited by the opportunity to be a part of Kearney’s global sustainability platform – it’s such a rewarding challenge to drive a shift to sustainable practices, and to spark that light in others as well. It’s what I enjoyed the most at IKEA and I now hope to bring that experience, ambition and spark to Kearney.”

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Client pressure meets delivery reality

For corporate leaders, the timing is significant. Companies across mobility, retail, and manufacturing are facing compressed timelines to demonstrate credible transition plans, while balancing cost, infrastructure constraints, and customer expectations. Advisors with hands-on experience in operationalizing sustainability commitments are increasingly in demand.

Richard Forrest, Global Head of Kearney’s Sustainability Team and senior partner, said the appointment responds directly to client needs.
“I am thrilled to welcome Angela to the team at such an important time for our clients, who are facing enormous pressure to transition to sustainable practices, quickly. Our focus is to help clients deliver their sustainability ambitions using the full power of Kearney, Angela’s passion and impressive track record for driving change towards sustainable business practices will be a highly valuable addition to the team.”

What executives and investors should note

Hultberg’s appointment highlights a broader shift within the consulting sector toward integrating sustainability into core strategy, operations, and capital allocation advice rather than treating it as a standalone discipline. For boards and investors, it signals growing recognition that climate strategy in transport and retail is now inseparable from competitiveness, regulatory resilience, and long-term value creation.

As governments tighten emissions standards and consumers demand cleaner delivery and mobility options, firms that can align strategy with execution are likely to pull ahead. Kearney’s move reflects that reality, positioning sustainability not as a peripheral advisory service, but as a central pillar of corporate transformation across regions and sectors.

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