Why Social Impact?
The Shift is Happening.
Economic crises, climate disasters, and global pandemics have galvanized a growing movement of citizens and businesses who wanted to be more socially and environmentally responsible.
Today more than ever, businesses recognize that they have a responsibility to contribute to a more ethical, inclusive, and greener society beyond profit. They are quickly realizing social and environmental challenges can also practically have an impact on their bottom line by disrupting supply chains, causing unanticipated interuptions, and an array of other unforeseen disturbances.
The Need for Social impact
Businesses hold a powerful lever for reducing inequality in their capacity as employers, producers, and buyers through ensuring decent working environments and connectedness for their employees and workers across the value chain. Even for businesses that aren't built around this model, social impact can inform how they operate and ensure their products and services can provide long-lasting value to consumers.
Seven out of ten Canadians believe companies should show how they make the world better. The challenge lies in finding a way to integrate positive impact across the value chain of the business. Instead of seeing purpose and profit as two mutually exclusive concepts, it’s time to understand that doing good for society simply makes good business sense.
Social Impact as your Advantage
There is a strong business case of the benefits for embracing a social purpose strategy:*
Attract and Retain Customers & Build Customer Brand Advocacy
Recruit, Retain, and Motivate Employees
Strengthen Stakeholder Relationships
Strengthen Social Capital
Enhance financial performance
Enable innovation and business transformation for greater resiliency
*research by United Way’s Social Purpose Institute
Because Intention isn’t Enough.
All of us have great intentions, but our “thoughts and prayers” for a better world can only go so far! To achieve positive impact, companies and organizations need a tailored Theory of Change, a deliberate strategy, a realistic action plan that works for the firm, combined with purposeful leadership in delivering social, economic, and ecological value.