Doing good by doing well: Shaping a sustainable future
Public pressure to tackle social issues isn’t just a threat to success–it’s also an opportunity for companies that know how to pick issues that are ripest for their leadership. Several trends are creating a new set of challenges for corporations. For example, even as a global company facing resource scarcity must create more efficient products […]
We Have To Crack The B2B Code
Photo credit: Nicola Corby Business Action for Africa. Reflecting on the events that I was privileged to attend during UN week in New York, I was struck by the immense potential that exists to crack the code for scalable business to business partnerships that directly aim to address the Millennium Development Goals through inclusive business […]
Meeting the Challenge of Expanding Inclusive Business
Opening Plenary New Member Commitments High Level Panel Event Photos Most of us interested in inclusive business have heard the success stories: Coca-Cola has generated $550 million in additional revenues by integrating local entrepreneurs into their beverage distribution chain in markets across Africa. Vodafone – one of the world’s largest telecommunications firm – now reaches […]
Jo Wackrill and Jessica Scholl: True Business Leaders see the Possibilities in Challenges
By Jo Wackrill and Jessica Scholl In a compelling blog last month, IBLF’s Chairman Mark Foster said: ‘Now is the time for today’s business leaders to step up with confidence to engage with the challenges the world faces and lead the way to smarter, more inclusive and more responsible growth’. It is in seeing the […]
Report: How can the private sector tackle global chronic disease?
IBLF has released ‘Many Healthy Returns’, a special report and action framework on the role of business in tackling global chronic disease (cardiovascular diseases, cancers, chronic respiratory diseases and diabetes).
Mark Foster: The Business Sector’s Pivotal Role in Growth
The current debt crisis has been portrayed in apocalyptic terms. The downgrading of the US’ triple-A rating, the paralysis of the political systems and the deficit of leadership in both US and Europe are depicted as marking the end of the era of growth. Cut public spending too deep and too fast, and recovery will […]
Hiring a Corporate Volunteering Consultant? Here’s what to expect.
Your consultant should be intelligent, experienced, and competent. Here are a few pointers to help you choose the corporate volunteering consultant who can meet your company’s needs. Most of our readers work in the field of Corporate Citizenship, CSR, Corporate Community Investment and Corporate Volunteering. The majority are directly responsible for their company’s employee volunteering […]
Business at the Base of the Pyramid: Blog by Susan Olsen, Inter-American Development Bank
Paul Polak, Founder, iDE: At Least a Million
For many years I have been a vocal advocate for what I call the “Don’t Bother Trilogy” in the practice of design, which states: 1. If you haven’t had good conversations with at least 25 customers before you start 2. If the product or service you design doesn’t pay for itself three times in the […]
Fashion Forward Running Apparel to Create Jobs in Kenya
Below is the press release for a non-profit called Kourage that I’ve built over the last 3-years. Back in 2008, I was a PhD candidate studying comparative political economy, specifically the economic and political effects of export-processing zones. I always felt ‘fair trade’ companies got it wrong, that they are so westernized, focusing all operatings […]
Jo Wackrill: Six Essential Mindsets for Long-Term Leadership
Today, there is widespread consensus that short-termism on the part of business leaders is not serving society, the environment or even business itself. In response, there have been many calls for ‘responsible’ leadership. These are a reminder that ethics, integrity and high business standards are essential characteristics of business leaders if they are to regain […]
Hybrid Value Chains: new opportunities for business growth while tackling development challenges?
By Michael Jarvis, World Bank Institute Can social entrepreneurs forge a more productive collaboration with corporations? One that is good for business growth but also tackles development challenges? Bill Drayton and Valeria Budinich suggest just that in a new article in Harvard Business Review. They introduce the concept of hybrid value chains (HVCs) based around […]
Amanda Bowman: Employee Engagement in Disaster Response – It Can be Done
I was last in New Orleans in 1998 – long before Katrina devastated the city and from a personal perspective, when my two teenage daughters were still toddlers. This time, I was in town earlier this month to participate in a meeting of the Global Corporate Volunteer Council. Nearly 20 managers responsible for their companies’ […]
The Business Case for Employee Volunteering – Case #1
Case #1 – Employee Engagement Many companies have employee volunteer programs, but for many companies in Europe, Canada and the US these programs are underfunded, underdeveloped and underutilized. This blog series is meant to offer a number of compelling reasons why your business needs to invest (a bit more) in employee volunteering. Employee Engagement: The […]
The Painful Story of Contracting in Afghanistan: I know a guy…
When we first started our local procurement project in January 2006, convincing international organizations to buy locally from Afghan businesses was a tough sell. Buyers had a laundry list of reasons that condemned local businesses to small value work, usually using the “I-know-a-guy” method of procurement. When the biggest spender operating in the country started […]
Clare Melford: A focus on ‘responsible marketing’ with the Bailey Review
As a former MTV executive, I was very interested to read about the Bailey Review (‘Letting Children be Children’), published in the UK media last week. It recommends inter alia that music videos should have age ratings to protect children from sexual images and lyrics. Reg Bailey, Chief Executive of Mothers’ Union, has led a […]
Stephen Farrant and Shivvy Jervis: We Need a Green ‘Innovation Revolution’ for Business to be Truly Sustainable
It’s a straightforward premise really – in the longer run, all business has to be environmentally sustainable or the laws of science will take over. We believe there is a clear and compelling business case for energy-intensive businesses to put environmental responsibility and resource efficiency on their core agenda now. And with the operating environment […]
Désirée Abrahams: Human Rights Impact Assessments are Like a Promising School Band
Last week, I attended the 31st International Association for Impact Assessment (IAIA) Conference, held in the stunning, colonial Méxican city of Puebla. I was honoured to be invited to this amazing conference; not only to listen and learn from those working at all levels in the impact assessment (IA) field but also because the session […]
Driving and Supporting Effective and Systemic Multi-Sector Collaboration
Nearly two decades ago, the UN’s Rio Declaration had the goal of “establishing a new and equitable global partnership through the creation of new levels of cooperation among States, key sectors of societies and people”. And then a decade ago, the major outcome of the Johannesburg follow-up Summit (Rio+10) was around the launching of 350 […]
Bridging the Worlds of Impact Investing and Inclusive Business
Attending this month’s SOCAP/Europe conference (see my blog about the event), I have been struck by the huge potential for connecting the world’s of impact investing and inclusive business. Both are effectively about using private capital to bring about positive social and environmental change. Very often both are focused on supporting small and medium enterprises […]