5 Keys to Successfully Creating Shared Value - Harvard Business Review
14 November 2013 at 9:49 am
Innovating for shared value relies on five mutually reinforcing elements, new research from international Not for Profit consulting firm FSG suggests.
The report, published in the Harvard Business Review, researched over 30 companies involved in social innovation and found five guiding principles common to each company.
The study found that all the companies involved had a social purpose embedded within their ethos, making solving social issues in a profitable manner their reason to exist.
For example, food manufacturers like Nestle have positioned themselves as health food companies, and carmakers Nissan and Toyota have positioned themselves as makers of low emissions mobility.
Researching and identifying social issues that exist within the company’s reach is also essential in starting a social enterprise. This allows opportunities to be recognised and capitalised on quickly and efficiently.
However, without sound evaluation mechanisms in place, the social and financial impacts of these enterprises become hard to analyse.
This evaluation is crucial to improve the parts of the plan that aren’t working, and celebrate the parts that are.
The report also discussed the support government agencies and Not for Profits can offer businesses in establishing social innovations. Seeking this support allows companies to shield other areas of the business from any risk attached to the project, creating an ideal environment for innovation and long-term approaches.
Marc Pfitzer, Managing Director at FSG, will be in Melbourne in November to speak at the 2nd Creating Shared Value Forum, find out more here.
