Social Enterprises: Built to Succeed, Designed to Help

Posted on June 10, 2015 by jeffhoffmanassociate

The world is rapidly changing. The opportunities and needs are changing. Governments, Businesses and Nonprofits/NGOs have been functioning fairly independently of each other, doing what they have been tasked to do. As society becomes more complex, the challenges are more complex, resulting in the need of new ways of getting things done. Plus, both governments and nonprofits/NGOs are often facing larger caseloads with fewer resources. Businesses are moving towards corporate social responsibility and sustainability models, where value is shared between the financial bottom line, society and the environment. There are partnerships, cross sector collaborations and other forms of the three pillars working together. Many of these partnerships have become very effective in accomplishing the joint goals of the participants. Yet the long term funding viability continues to be a challenge. Social enterprises are not only a way to help generate revenue, but often a better service delivery system.

I was honored to be asked to present the opening keynote address at the 2015 Social Enterprise Conference held in Kaohsiung City, Taiwan. The two day convening brought together representatives of social enterprises, impact investing, corporate foundations, incubator agencies, nonprofit/NGOs, students and governments with international speakers from Hong Kong, Singapore, Tokyo and Bangkok. The goal of the conference was to share insights on the various aspects and types of social enterprises, showcase examples of successful social enterprises that are growing and replicable, and when applicable, promote the transformation of NGOs into social enterprises.

Quoting Wikipedia, “a social enterprise is an organization that applies commercial strategies to maximize improvements in human and environmental well-being – this may include maximizing social impact rather than profits for external shareholders. Social enterprises can be structured as a for-profit or non-profit.” It is the blending of for-profit and non-profit strategies that are proving to not only be an effective way for the organization to achieve its goals and meet its mission, but a sustainable model as well. It really is about breaking down the traditional boundaries between the nonprofit and private sectors and creating hybrid or dual purpose entities. Reflecting this new structure, in some countries, there is a “B Corp,” or Benefit Corporation, legal status. There are variations in models across the social enterprise spectrum, the space between the traditional non-profit and the tradition for-profit enterprises. The sweet spot is in the middle where the best of both are working in an integrated approach resulting in social and financial value creation.

As a fun way to demonstrate various types of social enterprises, I presented Eating with Purpose… around the world. Being a foodie, I have noted the rise of restaurants as social enterprises. Celebrity chef Jamie Oliver has a for-profit restaurant that is one of the finest in London, England. It is located in an underserved community and provides jobs, but more importantly, skill development for neighborhood youth. After a year, the youth go off to work in other restaurants with one of the finest on their CV. Plus, Jamie gives the profits to his foundation. In Bangkok, Thailand, there is Cabbages & Condoms, a fun, yes, family restaurant that promotes understanding and acceptance of family planning while generating a revenue stream for the Population and Community Development Association. In Melbourne, Australia, many of Charcoal Lane’s past and current staff are Aboriginal and have experienced family conflict, mental health, drug and alcohol issues in addition to having lower levels of education. This too is a training ground for the restaurant and hospitality industries. I’ve dined at all three and can confirm that the food is delicious.

Social enterprise start-ups are being funded through impact investing and venture philanthropy. There are incubators and other programs that help social entrepreneurs get started or convert existing businesses or organizations. The methods of income generation range from fee-for-service, products, services, dues and unrelated business activities through restaurants, retail, manufacturing, banking, landscaping, ecotourism and just about anything that can be imagined. Many have become world renowned with recognizable names such as Grameen, Goodwill, Homeboy and Tom’s. The possibilities are endless and the need is great. Social enterprises are quickly becoming one of the most impactful models of social service delivery in the 21st century.

Posted in Economic Development, Impact Investing, Philanthropy, Social Enterprise | Leave a comment

Corporate Volunteers to tackle The Global Goals (SDGs) through IMPACT 2030

Posted on May 18, 2015 by jeffhoffmanassociate

As corporate volunteering has grown around the world, so has the effectiveness of the efforts. Today, skills-based volunteering is harnessing the intellectual capital of employees and deploying it against some of the world’s most challenging issues. The United Nations Post 2015 Agenda and The Global Goals… Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), will require a broad set of actors to achieve its ambitious goals by 2030. IMPACT 2030 was launched in December of 2014 by a dedicated group from business, nonprofits and the UN. When the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) were launched in 2000, business was not at the table although there have been many efforts put forth by companies towards achieving the MDGs. Thankfully, this time, the planning for the SDGs has been more inclusive.

The Conference Board’s Global Social Investing Council received a presentation on IMPACT 2030 at our Spring meeting. We heard from Sue Stephenson, Vice President, Community Footprints, The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, LLC and Vice Chairperson, Executive Committee for IMPACT 2030; and Diane Melley, Vice President, Global Citizenship Initiatives, Corporate Citizenship & Corporate Affairs, IBM. Both have been strong advocates of corporate volunteering.

“IMPACT 2030 is a global, private sector led initiative – developed in collaboration with the United Nations, civil society, academia and other stakeholders – created to advance the practice and impact of corporate volunteering to further the achievement of the Post-2015 Sustainable Development Goals.” Its mission and objectives are to:

· Promote awareness of the Sustainable Development Goals to employees and showcase how their volunteer actions will advance the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals.
· Create and facilitate avenues for cross-sector and cross-industry cooperation between companies and stakeholders to initiate joint commitments and actions.
· Work with existing resources to develop methodologies and frameworks through which to measure the impact of volunteer commitments of our member companies and the collective results of the IMPACT 2030 network on the development agenda.
· Create and maintain global representation of IMPACT 2030 through the multi-sector Regional Voice Network providing a platform to focus efforts on a country and region-wide basis.

It’s about “aligning company-level strategic human capital volunteering commitments directly to the Sustainable Development Goals, spurring social innovation, driving employee engagement, providing new avenues to develop employee skills, and ensuring all employee volunteer actions are recognized for their contributions.” And “facilitating mutually beneficial relationships with multi-sector partners, leveraging economies of scale, and increasing the significant role corporate volunteering plays as a positive vehicle for business involvement in local communities.”

Many companies are already working on alignment of their current volunteer programs. IBM has taken the 17 goals and mapped where they have resources to deploy in their global locations with where those resources are needed. Other companies are selecting only one or more of the goals that they think they have the expertise to help tackle, or in some cases are issues that could be critical to their businesses going forward. It’s not too early for businesses for all sizes to assess what they can do to help with the SDGs.

For IMPACT 2030 partnership information, email contact@impact2030.com and a member of the IMPACT 2030 Executive Committee will contact you with details.

http://www.impact2030.com

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Investing in Africa: Large Opportunities, Large Challenges

Posted on May 18, 2015 by jeffhoffmanassociate

Africa, a continent so large that India, China and the United States combined could easily fit within its footprint. A place rich in culture, natural resources and opportunity. Yet, as companies look at Africa for investments, either for profit or social, the immense scale and diversity of issues makes it daunting.

The Conference Board’s Global Social Investing Council conducted a session to better equip its members with an understanding of Africa. The group heard a distinguished panel from the Corporate Council on Africa, Last Mile Health, KPMG Center of Excellence for Development, The World Bank and Medtronic. They discussed the social infrastructure, economic development, long term social investment, lessons learned and policies that carries us from disaster response to strategic involvement; and the roles that corporations and their social investment commitments can play in Africa’s support.

To help ground the group, it was noted that often people refer to “issues related to India, Africa, China, etc… Africa is referred often as a single unit as if it is a country.” It has 54 countries with many languages, cultures, political systems, economies, levels of development, terrain and climates. Today it has a population of 1.1 billion people. It has 33% of the world’s poor despite 11% of the population. 783 million lack clean drinking water. 37% live in cities. Only 15 countries have gone through the last 10 years without conflict. Close to 50% are underemployed or unemployed. Looking ahead, by 2100, it is anticipated that Africa’s population will have quadrupled while much of the rest of the world’s will have shrunk (including China, India will have plateaued. Asia will peak in 50 years). Nigeria will grow 8 fold.

Power is a leading issue that if corrected could be a solution to many problems. Power generation capacity is grossly inadequate and is about the same as the country of Spain. 600 million people don’t have access to power. Currently fossil fuels provide 75% of generating capacity. For those who have access to power, its availability is inconsistent. Power outages cause havoc with water pumps, refrigeration, lighting and other infrastructure needed to operate businesses and for basic human needs. Foreign investment is helping though. 34% of Chinese investment in Africa is now in power.

With 54 countries, the continent is divided by many borders. Regionalization would help transportation, (including shipping of goods), communications, regulations and planning. Trains stop at boarders. Customs fees vary. If flying between countries, its often easier to fly to Europe, change planes and fly back to a neighboring country. A transcontinental power grid would help to provide consistent power and service to many areas that currently go without.

The picture is not all bleak, in fact far from it. Investment in infrastructure has tripled in the last decade. Mobile use is growing at more than 40% a year, twice the global growth rate. There is dramatic increase in private sector investment, although it is concentrated in a few countries.

Investing in Africa is not easy. There is a lot of hype. Development is uneven. Investing in Africa requires a partner on the ground to help maneuver. There is often conflict between the government and the private sector. Corruption hinders business. Although social media is bringing awareness and helping to decrease bad practices and bringing more accountability.

There is a movement towards urbanization. It’s an opportunity, but also a threat. There is social disruption caused by development. A move from agrarian to urban can cause culture wars and the elimination of connections to the past. One of the benefits of urbanization was seen with the Ebola crisis. If you got sick in the city, you might get treated. If you got sick in a rural area, not only were you most likely not treated, you died and the disease spread and then into other villages. No clinic, no power, no communications/internet. To date, in total, 10,000 died, 25,000 were infected reeking billions of dollars of economic damage.

The public sector can and should provide the foundation for the private sector to succeed and provide growth. There is a lack of financing available. Lending to the private sector is not a tradition and it’s hard to get foreign banks to back loans. But it is not impossible and the availability of funding is increasing. Intellectual capital is also needed. There is a shortage of capacity implementation experience and a problem with executing at scale fast enough. Yet, Africa and Africans, rich in natural and intellectual resources and potential capacities, need to be included as leadership to external investment and seen as intellectual peers with capacity for self-determination.

So what can companies do? Invest in power. Support education. Provide economic opportunity for young people. Fund healthcare. Healthcare is often left off the table when talking infrastructure. Healthcare contributes to economic growth. Medical schools are needed to train workers and clinics need to be built. We see micro economies growing with new entrepreneurs establishing businesses every day. Technology is breaking down barriers even if governments are not. There are multi-national organizations doing well in Africa and doing good. The organizations represented on the panel, as well as many others, provide valuable resources in helping to invest in Africa. The Sustainable Development Goals will also be a roadmap for responsible involvement.

http://www.africacncl.org/
https://www.africare.org/
http://lastmilehealth.org/

Posted in Corporate Citizenship, Economic Development, Health, Impact Investing, Philanthropy | Leave a comment

Corporate Philanthropy in Mexico

Posted on May 18, 2015 by jeffhoffmanassociate

Mexico’s business sector is becoming more vibrant, and foreign direct investment continues to grow, resulting in an emerging middle class. Philanthropy and volunteerism have become more widely embraced, particularly by Mexico’s private sector. Yet the appearance of the middle class has masked the important pockets of poverty, and some international funding has been redirected to other countries. They are in a Catch 22 situation represented by this saying: “poor no more/developed not yet.” Corporate donations are the single most important source of grants for Mexico’s nonprofit sector, contributing more than half of the grants. In fact, of the top 100 donors in Mexico, 32 are corporate foundations, 8 founded by successful business people and 8 established by business groups. So business is certainly having a significant philanthropic impact!

The Conference Board’s Global Social Investing Council was hosted at the Mexico Embassy’s Mexico Cultural Institute in Washington DC. A presentation was given on the economic and social landscape of the country. That was followed by a robust discussion with panelists from the Embassy of Mexico; Woodrow Wilson Center’s Mexico Institute; US‐Mexico Foundation; and, CEMEX. The session was curated by Michael D. Layton, Ph.D., Director, Philanthropy and Civil Society Project, Department of International Studies, Instituto Tecnológico Autónomo de México (ITAM). Businesses are beginning to respond to social responsibility and sustainability. There is a movement towards greater transparency and accountability: Mexico now has a website for data on nonprofits and grantmakers, Funds in Plain Sight, which got a helping hand from the Foundation Center. Volunteerism is becoming more common, particularly among corporations, with an increasing number of programs coming online every year.

Mexico’s nonprofit sector is relatively small, but contains a growing body of innovative social enterprises that are addressing the most important issues of the day. Currently, there are just under 7,000 nonprofit equivalents in the country compared to the 1.4 million 501(c)(3)s in the U.S. According to a poll conducted by the ITAM, 80% of individuals prefer to give directly to people in need, rather than through institutions: the challenge is for the generosity of Mexicans to be increasingly directed into institutional channels, so that the impulse to help those in need can result in lasting change. And then Mexico is a “paternalistic society” where there is an expectation that someone else will fix the problems. At the same time, there is growing public awareness of what is happening around the world and people are beginning to demand change. Remittances into Mexico total $20 billion USD annually with hometown associations collecting and aggregating the remittances as the government provides a 3 to 1 match. It’s complicated!

The fiscal framework allows both for tax-exemption for nonprofit organizations and grant making foundations, and they can receive tax-deductible donations from both businesses and individuals. Recent regulations to curb money laundering have had an unintended negative impact. Grants of $7,100 or more require disclosure of the granting organization’s chief executive’s personal information. Can you see your CEO’s personal data being made public, and can you imagine calling up stairs to ask for it! Obviously this is a show stopper. Regulators are aware of the issue and intermediaries may be able to provide a solution.

A number of intermediaries offer assistance to corporations to launch new programs or improve existing ones, including: Fondo Unido Mexico, the first affiliate of United Way outside of the US; the US-Mexico Foundation, which seeks to facilitate binational partnerships; FUNDEMEX, whose main thrust is the creation of sustainable and inclusive value chains; Synergos Institute, which has a representative in Mexico City; Alternativas y Capacidades, AC, a nonprofit that offers technical assistance and training; and, nearly two dozen community foundations, more than any other Latin American country.

In addition to the various issue areas that need help, panelists did ask attendees for help in educating Mexican businesses in best practices in CSR and Philanthropy. In general, companies lack the skills to effectively plan and implement programs. This could be an interesting collaborative opportunity for skills-based volunteering, going to various locations and conducting seminars. And opportunities for cross boarder employee exchanges of community/philanthropy staff. Really a great learning for all.

Woodrow Wilson Center’s Mexico Institute US‐Mexico Foundation
http://www.wilsoncenter.org/program/mexico-institute

US‐Mexico Foundation
http://www.usmexicofound.org/

CEMEX
http://www.cemex.com/SustainableDevelopment.aspx

Michael Layton’s publications
https://itam.academia.edu/MichaelDLayton

Funds in Plain Sight (in Spanish)
http://www.fondosalavista.mx/

Posted in Corporate Citizenship, Economic Development, Philanthropy | Leave a comment

Impact Investing as a Tool for Social Change: A Conversation with Jean Case

Posted on April 30, 2015 by jeffhoffmanassociate

Be Fearless! What if failure is not a limitation? Set audacious goals. Take bigger risks. Make bigger bets. Be bold. Let urgency conquer fear. These are powerful words. How did you get into this? How did you decide to dedicate your life to philanthropy? These were my opening questions to Jean Case, CEO of The Case Foundation, at the USC Center on Philanthropy and Public Policy’s Distinguished Speakers Series luncheon. Her answer: “what drew me to philanthropy, the root of it, was that I was an early recipient of philanthropy. People’s time and people’s money. I was raised by a single mom, who raised four kids alone. And because of this we had some challenges, but we had a wonderful, beautiful, community come around us and lift us up and really create paths of opportunity for me. I was on a full scholarship to a private school which led me to a mentor who was first a judge, then a mayor and then a congressman. I worked at his office for a while. This would have never happened if there weren’t a lot of people like everyone in this room. Opportunity for all is a concept that is important to me as I started out on the other side. We have been fortunate to land on this side of life and there is nothing more that we want do than ensure that we can provide opportunities for others with the resources that we have.” This was such an honest, and from the heart, response that clearly defines who Jean is, her work, and the programs we discussed.

You got to this point through philanthropy, a good mentor, a good education, you had a very successful career at AOL that was at the forefront of the internet movement, but then you came back to philanthropy. Why did you pivot? “We were very much a mission driven organization at AOL. Many of us felt at the time that AOL would have been a nonprofit because what we were out to do was to democratize access to information, ideas and communication, to really level the playing field of opportunity. It was under my responsibility to oversee the AOL Foundation. And that was my toe in the water to the official world of philanthropy. We knew that when I retired that I would turn to philanthropy full time. So in 1997 we started The Case Foundation. What took me three to five years to learn were the very same things that led to success in business, and that they would likely be the things that would lead to success in philanthropy as well.”

“The Be Fearless campaign was really a reflection point, what did we see when we looked back, what have we learned, what are we seeing in the world, what has been done for sometimes hundreds of years trying to tackle problems, and what are some of the bright spots? We want to go to school on what’s worked, those bright spots. We developed the five principles of Be Fearless:”

1.   Make Big Bets and Make History. Set audacious, not incremental, goals.
2.  Experiment Early and Often. Don’t be afraid to go first.
3.  Make Failure Matter. Failure teaches. Learn from it.
4.  Reach Beyond Your Bubble. It’s comfortable to go it alone. But  innovation happens at    intersections.
5.  Let Urgency Conquer Fear. Don’t overthink and overanalyze. Do.

Risk is an important part of their work. She talked about when you receive donations from others to do your programs, you get into “protectionist mode” and want to ensure that the funds are used successfully. When it’s “our own money” it’s different and you can experiment and as she said “experiment early and often.” To get people to open up and be comfortable about taking risks and making mistakes, they have Fail Fests. They share what has gone wrong, why and what they have learned. One of their learnings is that often the people being served don’t have a seat at the table, don’t have a voice, “but good luck getting the work right without their voice.”

“Impact Investing as a Tool for Social Change” was the title for our conversation that brought together foundation executives and trustees, individual donors, corporate philanthropists, and nonprofit executives and board members. I mentioned that there are so many definitions of Impact Investing, and asked her, what is yours? She first told a story of what their friend Mark Andreessen originally thought of it. “It’s a houseboat… not a good house, not a good boat.” She then went on to say “investing in a new class of entrepreneurs that want to build a new class of businesses that will create financial as well as a social returns.” Some of those investments are nonprofit and come from the Foundation and some of those investments are for profit and come from Revolution, the company Jean’s husband, Steve Case (co-founder of AOL) runs. An example is Revolution Foods. They currently provided over one million meals to schools that are kid friendly, chef inspired, healthy foods. The company won that bid, not because it was an impact investment, but because it’s a great company, serving quality product with great results. When the Cases set out to do their budget each year, Jean and Steve talk about what they want to accomplish, they challenge their staffs to do the same. The legal entity/tax status is not part of the equation. It is the end result, the social benefit, which is the primary determining factor.

As impact investing is a fairly new concept, I asked if public policy is a barrier. “Yes. Policy is lagging.” I asked what we can do to help when speaking with policy makers. “Are we clearing the decks to allow and unleash private capital to address social challenges?” Jean offered three points that are critical for a good investment “Clear intention. Commit to measure. Must be transparent.” Circling the discussion back to philanthropy and its role with impact investing, she said “Philanthropy alone is under leveraged. You need to look at everything you bring to the table. What is the big idea, how do we use all of our assets to achieve our goals.” The Case Foundation is doing much to advance the field of impact investing. They support the impact investing ecosystem and provide opportunities to educate and activate investors. They created “A Short Guide to Impact Investing” as a basic primer to help investors better understand how business can drive change and create social impact.

The Case Foundation is one of the few foundations that is focused on building the sector…philanthropy, volunteering, and civic engagement. They have been a catalyst in getting businesses to provide pro-bono support to nonprofits by helping to co-found A Billion + Change (a program of Points of Light). “We asked nonprofits what help they need to change their trajectory with scale and sustainability. They said we need some areas of talent that we don’t have and we can’t compete with the private sector. The areas include human resources, marketing, finance and technology. So we asked corporations to give $1 billion in pro-bono service in the areas that nonprofits need. Today there have been more than $5 billion worth of commitments by over 1,000 companies.”

We closed out our time together with the questions: What are some current trends you are seeing in philanthropy? What impact do you think these trends will have on philanthropy in the long term? “I’m so excited about philanthropy, but what I am really excited about is something that we can’t even name. The world is disrupted. No matter what role you are in or what sector you come from, nothing is the same as it was, and we know that change is only going to continue to accelerate. So I think there is a way you can go about changing the world. You drive down in philanthropy, or maybe the public sector, what I love about hanging out with those young kids is that they’re unleashed from those silos. They see a world that is not about, are you government, are you nonprofit, are you philanthropy or academia, they just want to go change the world. If we look around the corner, what I think we might see are whole new classes of governance, maybe not necessarily nonprofit, not necessarily for profit, maybe hybrids, that’s what some of the social enterprises are. I just think we need to unleash ourselves from how it has been and think about what it needs to be going forward. I am super encouraged. I can’t wait for the future!”

We had a lively 50 minute conversation that also covered Millennials, the Giving Pledge, mentoring and more. Jean Case is truly a force of nature. Smart, compassionate, energetic, forward thinking all wrapped up in urgency! It was a pleasure to interview her and learn from her wisdom. The entire conversation is on You Tube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MSiPxAzDQpE

 

Posted in Corporate Citizenship, Impact Investing, Philanthropy, Social Enterprise, Volunteering and Service | Leave a comment

Two Distinguished Scholars, with new Must Read Books, top Points of Light Corporate Meeting

Posted on March 28, 2015 by jeffhoffmanassociate

This year’s annual meeting of the Points of Light Corporate Service Council took place in the Boston offices of John Hancock. More than 75 companies were represented at the two day convening. Topics ranged from Innovation and Social Change to What is the Impact of Social Impact Measurement. We had presentations by two of the nation’s leading scholars and authors, Robert Putnam of Harvard and Don Sull of the London Business School and MIT.

Robert Putnam spoke of his new book, Our Kids: The American Dream in Crisis. A brilliant account of the roots of the growing income inequality. It discusses the real societal and economic costs, costs that need to be addressed to keep the country vibrant and able to compete properly on the world stage.

Among Putnam’s key findings:

  • While there’s been much discussion in recent years about America’s income inequality, we should brace ourselves for growing inequality of opportunity in coming decades. “
  • The American Dream is increasingly out of reach for lower income students.
    Closely calculated estimates of the aggregate economic costs of the widening opportunity gap—in terms of crime and law enforcement, of public health, and above all of lower labor productivity—are massive: $500 billion per year or roughly $6 trillion in present value over the lifetimes of the current cohort of disadvantaged kids.
  • There are many growing gaps between the opportunities facing poorer kids (parents with a high school degree or less) and richer kids (parents with a BA or more). Poorer kids get less “Goodnight Moon” time, have fewer family dinners, participate less in sports or other extracurricular activities, attend church less than their richer peers, and are more likely to be obese and inhale more second-hand smoke—each of these gaps has widened in recent years. Richer kids increasingly grow up in two-parent households with fewer economic worries, get high quality daycare, and trust their neighbors more than their poorer counterparts.
  • Familial and community resources and supports are increasingly available only to richer kids, as middle and upper class families deploy “air bags” to cushion their children from stressful or traumatic experiences or from mistakes they have made. Poorer families often don’t have the resources to deploy such “air bags” to minimize the negative consequences of childhood misadventures or family or economic changes. Growing up is about learning from mistakes, but the mistakes are relatively costless for affluent kids and often derail poorer kids from the path of success.
  • Parents of both rich kids and poor kids want their children to succeed, but the parents of the rich kids typically know how to achieve this, while the parents of poor kids often do not.
  • The Internet seems more likely to widen the opportunity gap than to close it. Affluent Americans use the internet in ways that are mobility-enhancing, whereas poorer, less educated Americans use it in ways that are primarily entertaining.
    Lower class kids are less trusting than their upper class counterparts, because their social environment is pervasively less trustworthy.

Don Sull’s decade long study shows that most successful companies don’t try to deal with complex issues with complex solutions. Most manage complexity with simplicity. His new book, simple rules: how to survive in a complex world, is co-written with Kathy Eisenhardt of Stanford,. People tend to check out when solutions to problems become too complex. Develop a framework, not an algorithm, as it leaves scope for initiative, creativity, experience and expertise.

Both books are a must read. My take-a-way words from this convening are from Paul Burton, a reporter for WBZ-TV News and director of the Ron Burton Training Village, a youth sports camp founded by his father. “Dream big, but act now.”

http://robertdputnam.com/

http://donsull.com/

http://www.pointsoflight.org/for-companies

Posted in Corporate Citizenship, Volunteering and Service, Youth | Leave a comment

Business-Community Impact Symposium

Posted on February 18, 2015 by jeffhoffmanassociate

Business-Community Impact Symposium. Four words, when combined, signal an important convening. Held at Celsius, an unusual all glass house in Bryant Park, participants could ponder intriguing thoughts and glance out at ice skaters and the snowy New York surroundings. I was honored to be the program director, and master of ceremonies, for this conference put on by The Conference Board. When I was asked to lead this conference, I told them that I wanted to do something different. There are many conferences in the CSR and corporate philanthropy space. The plan was to create an intimate, collaborative space that fostered dialog between peers. The day and a half took on different forms. Ted-Talk style talks, fast paced panels and Impact Moments. Thirty-six speakers shared their wisdom and experience.

The World: Post 2015. United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. 2015 is a critical year on the world stage. The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) end and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) will be launched. Issues range from education, climate change, and gender equality to poverty alleviation. Unlike the MDGs targeted to developing countries, the SDGs are just as relevant in Detroit as they are in Mumbai. The conference began with this important topic and was moderated by Jennifer Kim Field, VP of Global Partnerships, UN Foundation. A blog, Sustainable Development Goals through the Lens of Corporate Philanthropy, goes into detail of some of what was discussed. http://tcbblogs.org/philanthropy/2015/01/08/sustainable-development-goals-through-the-lens-of-corporate-philanthropy/#sthash.W0fPK2Ek.B7NUT5yG.dpbs

When you think of some of the world’s great brands, Virgin is often towards the top of the list. Richard Branson is passionate about making the world a better place. And as a result, he created Virgin Unite, and moved the head of his Australian mobile business to lead it. Jean Oelwang is the CEO of Virgin Unite. She partners to create new approaches to social and environmental issues, such as the Branson Centres of Entrepreneurship and a global platform to support budding entrepreneurs. Jean talked about business as a force for good. Business can and must be a force for good in the world. New approaches to leadership, supporting entrepreneurs to launch and grow businesses and helping businesses to prioritize people and planet along with profit. Uniting great people and entrepreneurial ideas, reinventing how we live and work is not only good for society, but for the bottom line.

Each of the three Philanthropy Councils of The Conference Board presented a panel on a topic discussed at one of their recent meetings. Contributions Council I presented Improving Student Achievement Through the Use of Technology. Creativity as a Tool to Solving Social Issues was discussed by Contributions Council II. A recap of the Global Social Investing Council’s meeting in Beijing covered the opportunities and challenges of corporate giving in China. A blog on that meeting can be found at: http://jeffhoffmanassociates.com/Blog/?p=479

A dynamic trio from Gap, Inc., CECP and Cities of Service presented Volunteers: A Strategic Resource. A lively discussion ensued regarding how often corporate volunteers paint gyms, plant gardens, or clean up beaches, when they could be designing websites, drafting HR handbooks, or creating billing systems. For volunteers to tackle these types of projects, corporations and nonprofits need to think differently about how they collaborate, the role that volunteers can play, and driving impact. Reimaging Service’s final report was referenced as an important tool. http://jeffhoffmanassociates.com/Blog/?p=537

JPMorgan Chase, Investing in Detroit’s Future, was the first Impact Moment. $100 million investment in the next five years. This will be done through Community Development, Tackling Blight, Strengthening Workforce Readiness, Growing Small Businesses, Seeding Future Economic Growth and Skills-Based Volunteering. This is an incredible place-based program utilizing various elements of the company’s competencies and resources partnering with other companies, nonprofits and government. Collaboration at its best.

We all face the challenge of getting the word out. You have an amazing program. The impact is significant. But no one knows about it. This is not an uncommon problem. Seth Marbin of Google and Lauren Mihajlov of United Health Foundation discussed how to get your message through the clutter. Social media provides an incredible opportunity to reach people, so does traditional media. You aren’t just competing with external forces, positioning your message internally is critical.

To close at the first day, Tim McClimon, President of the American Express Foundation shared Global Trends Impacting CSR in 2015. As the world becomes more complex, so do the jobs of CSR professionals. Navigating emerging issues is both critical and challenging. There are several trends that need to be on your radar. Tim’s blog outlines the trends: http://about.americanexpress.com/csr/csrnow/csrn155.aspx

Day two began with all important data. Data that we need to prove the business case for what we do and demonstrate the impact that we make. Two recent studies were shared. Framing Social Impact Measurement (Conference Board Key Business Issue) and Giving in Numbers. http://www.conference-board.org/publications/publicationdetail.cfm?publicationid=2861 http://cecp.co/research/benchmarking-reports/giving-in-numbers.html

Three Impact Moments were presented. Financial Opportunity Corps a new program to help low and moderate income households achieve financial stability. The program helps clients develop strategies to reduce debt, improve credit to receive lower interest loans, start saving for emergencies and build assets through one-on-one or small group interaction with volunteers. This is an initiative of Bank of America working with Points of Light and AmeriCorps. The Environment. In enhancing our environment, we are improving the well-being of our communities.The Solar Habitat Program is a model for building visible, community programs that have a social, environmental, economic as well as a business benefits. This program has a focus on measurement, which is used to evaluate and evolve the approach taken to be more effective. Solar Habitat is a program of Pacific Gas and Electric Company. Digital Opportunity. Interconnectedness is bringing the world together. Still, there are many underserved communities that are either not connected to the internet, or have not yet realized the Web’s full potential. Equinix, Inc. is working with global NGOs through the Digital Opportunity framework.

Social Entrepreneurs: The New Frontier. B-Corps, Social Enterprises, Sustainable Business Practices, Shared Value. Strategic Philanthropy is now sharing space with other core elements of the business plan in tackling social and environmental challenges. Four organization, Points of Light Civic Accelerator, The Case Foundation, Shore to Shore Advisory and Library For All, both for-profit and not discussed the opportunities to create positive change through entrepreneurism.

Collective Impact is so much more than a current buzzword. Large-scale social change requires broad cross-sector coordination, yet the social sector remains focused on the isolated intervention of individual organizations. Substantially greater progress could be made in alleviating many of our most serious and complex social problems if nonprofits, governments, businesses, and the public were brought together around a common agenda to create collective impact. Laura S. L. Herman, Managing Director of FSG took the group through the Collective Impact framework and discussed the importance of funding a backbone organization to ensure that all of the parts are working properly.

The grand finale of the symposium was presented by the grand dame of Purpose, Carol Cone of Edelman. Around the world, corporate leaders are stepping up to the “bully pulpit” making declarations, aligning organizational goals with select societal and environmental issues. These actions signify a shift in leadership, where societal issues are becoming integrated into core business strategy and culture. Organizational purpose, social innovation, reputation management, and stakeholder engagement are all at play. Proving the case for integration, and exceptional examples of focused campaigns with deep internal and external resonance was explored.

Participants of the Business-Community Impact Symposium left with their tool boxes full plus feeling energized and inspired.

www.conference-board.org/businesscommunityimpact

Posted in Corporate Citizenship, Economic Development, Education, Environment, Harmony, Health, Philanthropy, Social Enterprise, Volunteering and Service, Youth | Leave a comment

Convert Good Intentions into Greater Impact: Reimagining Service Summary Report

Posted on January 15, 2015 by jeffhoffmanassociate

A group of service and volunteering leaders came together in 2009 to collectively think about increasing the impact of volunteering. I, like many, was on the “supply” side of volunteering, having a large “supply” of Disney VoluntEARS ready and willing to get involved. Most of the volunteer activities were worthwhile and made a positive impact, but many projects were really more an opportunity to engage the volunteers. The question for many was, and increasingly is today, how do we ensure that the recipient organization, and those they provide services to, get as much or more out of the volunteering than the person volunteering? Changing the equation from the supply side to the demand side was a big part of the answer. This is where that group, formed five years ago, has made great strides. That group is Reimagining Service.

Reimagining Service has sought to “convert good intentions into greater impact”. It has inspired new research and practices as well as several initiatives that have changed the way organizations from all sectors are engaging volunteers, including the Civic 50 and the Nonprofit Service Enterprise Initiative. The Service Enterprise Initiative is the one that I am most proud of and hope that it continues to scale. It started as a partnership between CaliforniaVolunteers and Reimagining Service. “A Service Enterprise is an organization that fundamentally leverages volunteers and their skills across all levels of the organization to successfully deliver on its social mission.” Through a local cohort, nonprofit executives go through a program of trainings and coaching to help them more effectively use volunteers. The Service Enterprise Initiative will continue on and be led by Points of Light.

While the work of Reimagining Service will live on, the initiative will sunset this month. The campaign objectives have been met. We continued for a year longer than anticipated, created some additional research, and saw ideas and concepts instituted. The Reimaging Service Council is made up of an amazing group of people and I am proud to have served with them. Our executive director, Kaira Esgate, and our chair, Bobbi Silton of Gap, Inc., took our work well beyond our initial expectations. To close out Reimagining Service, a final report has been prepared that summarizes lessons learned, emerging practices, as well as areas of work that still remain. The report is filled with good information and I encourage you to download, and share, with your colleagues. All Reimagining Service resources, including research, case studies, and toolkits, will remain online at www.ReimaginingService.org

To view the report, please visit: http://bit.ly/1xrxfck

Posted in Volunteering and Service | Leave a comment

India – Dealing with the New Regime

Posted on January 13, 2015 by jeffhoffmanassociate

In September, Chinese President Xi Jinping made a three-day visit to India whereby he and Prime Minister Narendra Modi signed three pacts. Last month, Russian President Vladimir Putin paid a visit to PM Modi. U.S. Secretary of State, John Kerry, was just in India meeting with India’s 15th Prime Minister. During a meeting, the PM spoke about a ‘level playing field’ to make India a manufacturing hub, adding that government has put the focus on building infrastructure. President Obama will be in India towards the end of the month holding talks with top Indian leadership including Modi on various key bilateral issues. He will be the guest of honor at the Republic Day celebration. It’s clear, the world’s leadership is focused on Narendra Modi.

Last week I attended “India – Dealing with the New Regime.” This was the topic at the National Association of Corporate Directors lunch in Los Angeles. After a few challenging years for business under PM Manmohan Singh, Modi took office May 26, 2014 with high expectations that his appointment may result in greater ease in doing business in India. The program panel was comprised of three India experts. Santosh Anoo, Principal, Deloitte Consulting India; Anand Nallathambi, CEO, CoreLogic; and DJ Peterson, President, Longview Advisors. Hoshi Printer, NACD So Cal Programs Chair, moderated the panel.

Santosh started off saying that the change in Prime Minister is a shift less about governing, but a shift in philosophy. Economic development can and will help India. The BRIC countries, (Brazil, Russia, India and China) are seeing their economies slow. India is the only one that shows positive signs. Modi wants to see India as a manufacturing center, he thinks he can beat China in this. There are two top priorities that must first be met. Energy and infrastructure. Manufacturing cannot be built without both. A third area is the need to deliver talent. China has raised the level of education in the labor force. India has not. Santoosh says much of the labor force is not equipped. Education will be key. India has not done a good job fighting poverty. Infrastructure improvements have been promised for a long time. It is very difficult to get approval to build large scale projects, such as the Mumbai Subway. Taxation is problematic as each of the 29 states has their own system which inhibits inter-state commerce.

Anand talked about his business, Core Logic, and the challenges in reliability and credibility with businesses in India. Two million students are graduated each year with degrees in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math), yet they are not taught “how to go to work.” Many behaviors that could be put together under the title of workplace etiquette, are foreign concepts. So while the skills might be in place, the behavior is a block to success. And with those who have both the skills and etiquette, companies have to prove to them that they are a viable employer. And prove this to the prospective employee’s family. Companies have family days where families are invited in, given tours, overviews, to demonstrate that they are a “world class” company. The human capital issues are immense.

DJ talked about the key drivers that Prime Minister Modi has in his favor. A popular mandate for change, business is job #1, a long term pay and favorable external environment. He said that he will start out cautiously and then float some ideas to gauge public sentiment. He has elevated the role of economic reformers in his cabinet. Manufacturing is a way to put India’s ample and cheap labor to work. DJ is “optimistic” about India’s future.

All three made their presentations through the lens of what a corporate director should be thinking of when doing, or considering doing, business in India. While we are just past the sixth month mark of his term, Prime Minister Modi has big challenges ahead of him, but the prospects are bright.

http://southerncalifornia.nacdonline.org/Events/PastEvent.cfm?ItemNumber=12506

http://www.longviewglobal.com/Insights.html

Posted in Corporate Governance, Economic Development | Leave a comment

Social Innovation Summit

Posted on November 24, 2014 by jeffhoffmanassociate

Last week I attended the Social Innovation Summit, held in the Silicon Valley. The organizers, Landmark Ventures, describe it best: “A global convening of black swans and wayward thinkers. Those who are playing at the nexus of technology, investment, philanthropy, international development, and business come together to investigate solutions and catalyze inspired partnerships that are disrupting history. If we are obsessed with anything, it is great people. We convene the world’s most potent leaders, thinkers, and practitioners with an unwavering bias towards action and a push towards scale. Let’s be clear about one thing, we are not your average conference. Where most bring together luminaries to explore the next big idea, we bring together those hungry not just to talk about the next big thing, but to build it.”

It truly was an amazing two days. This fast paced convening was out of the box. While a book could be written about the great content, I did capture some nuggets:

  • “We want to make globalization personal.” Premal Shah, CEO, Kiva “Purpose puts humanity back into the workplace.”
  • “30% US households don’t have broadband. Need to solve this digital divide issue.” Bret Perkins, VP External and Governmental Affairs, Comcast
  • “How many drugs can be replaced by bioelectronics? Probably a lot” Dr. Kevin Tracey, President Feinstein Institute for Medical Research
  • “Innovative philanthropy is not leaving talent on the table. Donors are partners! Kate Roberts, SVP, Corporate Partnerships, PSI
  • “Change happens at the speed of trust.”
  • “For real change to happen, the rules have to change and that means internalizing externalized costs,” Rick Ridgeway, VP, Environmental Affairs, Patagonia “Consumption is the real elephant in the room in terms of sustainability.”
  • “I don’t want to accept the things I can’t change, I want to change the things I can’t accept” Stephen Ritz, Founder, Green Bronx Machine
  • “Globally, women work two thirds of hours, but earn a small fraction of wages.” Anne Rohosy, President, Americas, Levi Strauss & Co.
  • “Once you have the proof points, then you can move towards broad based support of Shared Value in the company.” Lalitha Vaidyanathan, Managing Director, FSG
  • “Youth multitasking: 10 hours and 45 minutes worth of media content daily is consumed in 7.5 hours.” Brian Goodwyn, CEO, Discovery Education
  • “The future of sustainable brands is really the future of brands.” Daryl Brewster, CEO, CECP

I stepped out of the main session to participate in the Civic Accelerator Investor Café. This was a fast paced, and fun, “speed dating” approach to talking with the Fall 2014 Cohort. These innovative social entrepreneurs made the case for their companies, both for profit and nonprofit to a group of angel investors and coaches. I was a coach and was fascinated by the seven minute exchanges. Hello Tractor, a for profit that supports African farmers through an innovative “Uber style” tractor co-sharing platform was my top pick. STE(A)M Truck and Library for All were great new nonprofits.

https://www.socinnovation.com/ehome/93458

http://www.pointsoflight.org/civic-incubator/civic-accelerator

Posted in Corporate Citizenship, Economic Development, Education, Environment, Health, Philanthropy, Social Enterprise, Volunteering and Service, Youth | Leave a comment