By: Alan Cole
With the world in an era of dizzying, social, technological and political change, are business skills and business innovation set to play an increasing role in maximising positive social impact? Are traditional boundaries between what constitutes a business or charitable organisation set to become increasingly blurred? Will the business leaders of tomorrow make bigger social responsibility commitments than their predecessors?
Let’s hope so. The world continues to face colossal and growing challenges. The refugee crisis - 65.3 million people displaced from their homes in the last year, according to the UN - stems from a rise in conflicts and extremism, as well as poverty, rights abuses and climate disasters. This global crisis alone points to the need for urgent expansion of sustainable programmes that can deliver impact, and build the peace and economic security that the world is crying out for.
At the same time as this humanitarian crisis gathers our attention, we continue to live in a world of grotesque inequality. The 62 richest people on the planet have the same wealth as the 3.6 billion poorest people. This is a world where hundreds of millions of people go hungry every day yet a third of all food produced is wasted. A world with rising food prices and inefficient food systems that disproportionately impact on the world’s poorest people.
With so many challenges, there has never been a more pressing time for a stepping up of leadership and action to build fairer and safer societies. However, as the need for solutions grows, the pressures on social impact pioneers to gather funds and resources to deliver those solutions are also growing.
Amidst a backdrop of narrowing state funding opportunities and heightened media and regulatory pressure, it’s becoming clear that many social impact organisations in order to become more efficient and deliver greater impact are seeking to attract candidates from a business background or with advanced business skills and qualifications.
Leadership skills, legal skills, financial skills, IT skills, professional marketing skills and qualifications; as well as organisational management and personal management skills are in demand more than ever from organisations seeking to advance their social impact causes in more effective ways.
This is reflected in a growth of training programmes focusing on business skills and leadership for the social impact sector; as well as the wider availability of courses offering mentoring and training to new social entrepreneurs.
Partnership building is another area which is being seen as vital for social impact organisations right now in order to maximise efficiency via the pooling of resources, and that is a skill I think it is fair to say which you see many business leaders excel at.
As I continue to build on my skills and experience to support projects developing impact, I am inspired by others around me who are strengthening their commitments to drive positive change. I gain insights through speaking with people in different sectors, and my work for Xperedon, a social enterprise providing tech solutions for impact, has revealed to me the value of effective partnerships, leadership and innovation around the world.
Fortunately, despite the massive challenges in societies right now, there is enormous hope for the future, especially with so many young, bright and entrepreneurial people coming forward as part of a new movement that recognises the need for a new era of impact, as evidenced by the grass-roots led sustainability movement combating food waste, as well as the increasing calls from campaigners for action on climate change, and solutions to address poverty, the plight of refugees and other marginalised and excluded groups.
The increasing determination of many businesses to support social responsibility initiatives, especially innovative approaches that offer mentoring, skills training, as well as the rooting out of bad practices in supply chains, or the delivery of pioneering technologies for clean energy and sustainable development, should also be applauded.
Innovation and commitment has to be key, but the impetus to drive change also has to be founded in ethics based on positive values and steered by socially responsible decision-making at the individual level.
As well as our DNA, plentiful research suggests that our ethical values are formed by the impact of our upbringing, and our social environment; and that’s why it’s vital that we need more of these values on display in all areas of public life, providing the leadership to help solve the clearly identifiable problems in the world, and also deliver the role models and inspiration for future generations to follow.
Pioneers for Change is a seed-bed for innovative thought. An activator of personal potential. A catalyst for collective energy. A community to drive social change.
Our annual, international Fellowship is open to anyone aged 28 - 108 years old. We gather change-makers — a business person, a community person, an investor, a thinker or doer — who are willing to harness their talents, energy and resources as a force for good. Pioneers for Change is an initiative of Adessy Associates.
Adessy Associates believes social and business objectives are mutually reinforcing. We equip organisations with sustainability / social responsibility strategy, management and communications to enable a sustainable future. We focus on benefit for people, planet and profit with bespoke services that harness sustainability, innovation, consciousness and purpose. We are proudly B Corp certified.
About Alan Cole
Alan Cole is a writer, editor and digital strategist committed to supporting projects delivering social impact. Having worked as a business and community journalist for UK publishers including Pearson Media, more lately Alan has focused on technology and impact, as Editor and CCO at Xperedon, a social enterprise providing solutions for charities and CSR. Alan offers freelance as well as pro bono work, and is currently advisor for a new MBA business skills leadership course for the NFP sector, being set up in Western Australia. He is also communications lead at AffecTech, a major European research project focused on wearables technology and digital health.