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A Future Beyond Short-Term Profit: A Movement Builds for Mission-First Business Structures
Business as usual is not working to solve major world problems—in many cases it’s actually causing them, due to flaws built into the foundation of conventional business and investing structures. Jasper van Brakel of RSF Social Finance discusses how this realization is sparking a grassroots global movement behind mission-first business, rooted in stakeholder governance and seeking profit as an engine for creating social, cultural and ecological good.
- Categories
- Social Enterprise
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2020 Will See Mass Market Adoption of Financial Inclusion. Here’s Why.
For many years financial inclusion has been considered a social initiative, part of corporations’ “doing good” role. But according to Josh Gosliner at Juvo, it’s becoming clear that there has to be a bottom-line incentive for companies to direct the necessary resources to the problem. He explores three trends, powered by the emergence of digital technology and big data, that promise to generate transformative business opportunities in financial inclusion in the coming year.
- Categories
- Finance
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Education Sector Received the Lion’s Share of Corporate CSR Spend in India
The CSR activities taken up by the companies relate to various sectors including education, healthcare, sanitation, environmental sustainability, poverty alleviation and skill development.
- Categories
- Education
- Region
- South Asia
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Avoiding Impact Washing, Hero Worship and Other Ethical Marketing Pitfalls: A Q&A with Justin Belleme
How should impact-focused businesses market what they do – without succumbing to pitfalls such as impact washing or hero worship? We posed that question to Justin Belleme, the director of strategy at JB Media Group. As one of the few marketing agencies with a B Corp certification, JB Media works with multiple impact-focused businesses and organizations, including the SOCAP conference. In this Q&A, Belleme explores how well-intentioned impact entrepreneurs and their communications teams can keep their marketing in line with their missions.
- Categories
- Technology
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Indian Government Expands Scope of CSR Spending
Till now, companies were allowed to provide CSR funds to technology incubators located within Centre-approved academic institutions.
- Region
- South Asia
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Steve Mnuchin Dissed 181 Major CEOs in a New Battle Over the Future of Profits
Steve Mnuchin joined the ranks of those not happy with the Business Roundtable's revised statement on the “Purpose of a Corporation,” signed by 181 CEOs of major corporations. The Treasury Secretary said he would not have signed it.
- Region
- North America
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The Business Roundtable Announcement: How We Can Ensure It’s Part of a Paradigm Shift – and Not Just Window Dressing
Last week members of the Business Roundtable, an organization comprised of CEOs of some of the world’s largest corporations, signed a statement "modernizing its principles on the role of a corporation." They declared that the purpose of a corporation is to create value for employees, suppliers, customers and communities – not just shareholders. At face value, it's a game-changing announcement. Impact investing pioneer Margot Brandenburg explores how to hold these companies accountable to it.
- Categories
- Investing
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Viewpoint: Stakeholder Capitalism: Intention is the First Step toward Accountability
Maybe someday soon, we will be able to know how well a company treats its employees or contributes to climate change, as part of its regular filings. With more actions, we’ll get more data and start to understand which actions lead to better financial performance, and which might not, but will be viewed as worth doing by Americans and the company’s shareholders anyway.
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