Osbert is a director of Footprint Consulting, an ethical enterprise which helps organisations in the transition to a sustainable future. He also leads the CHE Ethical Enterprise at the University of Strathclyde. He was formerly executive director of CHE for seven years, until January 2008.

Osbert has led consultancy on environmental impacts for Traidcraft plc, and on responsible purchasing for the Scottish Parliament. He is currently researching the potential to increase the public sector sourcing of sustainable food. Previous experience includes: developing sustainability management education for business with WWF-UK; creating an index of environmental and social reporting by Scottish companies; management consultancy in Scotland and Eastern Europe; and SME business development.