Meet Colin Tetreault of S2 Consulting and Julie Ann Wrigley Global Institute of Sustainability

Today we’d like to introduce you to Colin Tetreault.

So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
Business father, Quaker mother… you get a principled change agent that believes in the power of enterprise to help make the environment, society, our economies better. I’m a relentless change agent in our shared world.

I grew up loving the outdoors – our sacred spaces – for their beauty and intrinsic value. Fast forward through all the awkward high school years (drum major of the marching band anyone?). I jumped headfirst into the world of marketing, sociology, and international business development at ASU. I lived abroad in Sweden studying at the Baltic Business School while consulting for firms like Vodaphone.

With the pleasure of learning from great mentors during and post-college, I made the decision to accelerate and unleash my passion for using business for good through a lens of sustainability. During grad school, I opened my boutique firm, S2 Consulting. At the same time, I started to zealously advance our community/world by joining and serving domestic and international NGO’s on their boards.

Arizona State had the vision to invest in recruiting the best future students and equipping their current students with real-world business and sustainability experiences; I was honored to join the team. I lead the highest echelon of senior and grad students in partnering with Fortune 500 enterprises to add demonstrable firm value while providing a life-changing experience for the students.

I was humbled to be tapped by Mayor Greg Stanton to serve as his Senior Policy Advisor for Sustainability in 2012. Serving as the first and highest ranking appointed sustainability policy leader in the state was an honor. With the leadership of the mayor, we created the biggest sustainability turnaround story in a city government.

In 2016, I was asked to Chair the NCAA Final Four sustainability work. With a dynamite team, we accomplished an amazing lift. We planned and executed the most sustainable Final Four – and only “jewel” event – by attaining the highest level of certification through third-party audit and verification.

Presently, I’m the fortunate benefactor of my wife’s poor taste in men, a father of two amazing children, and a committed change agent.

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
By no means has the sustainability path been a perfectly smooth one. Granted, good sailors are rarely made in calm waters.

I’ve been fortunate – beyond measure – to have mentors how have guided me, gone to bat for me, given me tough love, and encouraged me to be bold and courageous.

Please tell us about S2 Consulting and Julie Ann Wrigley Global Institute of Sustainability.
S2 Consulting acts as an honest broker for business-driven sustainability outcomes. Not to let the secret out, but it’s hard work, an earnest & honest approach, and focusing on adding value – through sustainability – to the firm that gets things done.

I’ve worked hard to cultivate strong relationships that transcend politics and ideologies and focus on shared value.

I’m honored to have partnered with firms like Intel, Starbucks, and PetSmart on various endeavors ranging from governance strategy to local engagement. Ultimately, I don’t judge the success of my firm by the clients we keep but by the outcomes and service we provide.

If you had to go back in time and start over, would you have done anything differently?
Buy Apple stock in 1990. Or come up with a brilliant idea for hailing cars on a smartphone. Or play the odds on the Cubs winning the World Series. Any of those work.

Contact Info:

• Email: colin@s-2consulting.com
• Twitter: @colintetreault

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