We don’t usually publish press releases but this is one is informative and OK!

CECP Leads International Corporate Philanthropy Day

With new impacts measurement research and a convening of over 50 leading global CEOs

New York, NY: February 22, 2010 – Today, leading companies and organizations around the world celebrate International Corporate Philanthropy Day (ICPD), a day designated to highlight milestones and achievements in corporate philanthropy and encourage further corporate community investment. The Committee Encouraging Corporate Philanthropy (CECP) - an international forum of business CEOs and chairpersons with a mission to raise the level and quality of corporate philanthropy - leads the global initiative by hosting a series of executive-level events, highlighted by the fifth annual Board of Boards CEO Conference at The McGraw-Hill Companies in New York City. This is the first of three global CEO events in 2010, with additional CEO Conferences to be held in London on May 7 and in Abu Dhabi on November 11.

President Barack Obama has sent a letter of support to business leaders in recognition of ICPD. “Today’s challenges,” he writes, “demand solutions that come not only from government, but also from entrepreneurs and business leaders around the world. Through their skills, ingenuity, financial support, and dedication, corporate philanthropists and their employees have answered the call to serve, giving back in meaningful ways that help those in need and improve our communities.”

Charles Moore, executive director of CECP says, “The Board of Boards CEO Conference provides a unique opportunity for CEOs to engage in meaningful dialogue about business’ role in society. Today’s business leaders are integrating the social strategies of their companies with their business strategies for the purpose of reinforcing their competitive advantage.”

Board of Boards CEO Conference

The conference, which is consistently ranked among the world’s top CEO events by Weber Shandwick, will convene up to 50 leading global CEOs to discuss the theme “Solving Social Problems through Business Strategy,” focusing on what corporate leaders can do now to stay ahead of increasingly complex social issues and rising social expectations. In preparation for this event, CECP, together with McKinsey & Company, has been exploring the global forces that will affect the landscape of corporate community involvement in the next ten years. Klaus Kleinfeld, President and CEO of Alcoa and Ken Powell, Chairman and CEO of General Mills, will lead a discussion, moderated by ABC News’ National Correspondent Chris Bury, on how companies can have the greatest impact with their corporate giving strategies in the next decade. Domestic Policy Adviser Melody Barnes will address attending CEOs at an Executive Luncheon following the conference.

New Impacts Measurement Research

In addition, on February 22 CECP will release a new report, Measuring the Value of Corporate Philanthropy: Social impact, business benefits, and investor returns, that assesses current practices and measurement trends in corporate philanthropy. This report, which focuses on three primary conversations — between giving practitioners and grantees, between giving practitioners and the CEO, and between the CEO and investor community – clarifies the demands for evidence of the social and business benefits of corporate giving and identifies the most promising steps forward for practitioners.

Joint Event on Philanthropy with the United Nations

In the afternoon of ICPD, CECP will join the UN Economic and Social Council and the UN Office for Partnerships in hosting a special program focusing on “Engaging philanthropy to promote gender equality and women’s empowerment.” Confirmed executive panelists include Alan Hassenfeld (Hasbro); Michael Patsalos-Fox (McKinsey & Company); Sharon Allen (Deloitte LLP); and Sharon D’Agostino (Johnson & Johnson). UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon will address attendees.

New York Stock Exchange Bell-Ringing

Senior giving practitioners from CECP member companies including Alcoa, Bloomberg, Capital One, General Mills, Intel, Moody’s, The McGraw-Hill Companies, and ITT will open the day’s activities by ringing the Opening Bell at the New York Stock Exchange in recognition of their companies’ philanthropy initiatives.

Recent Trends in Corporate Philanthropy

Corporate philanthropy programs are investments in the future: for a company’s employees, for its communities, and for the business itself. This trend is evidenced by CECP’s 2009 “Giving in Numbers” report, which found that among companies with decreased pre-tax profit in 2008, 53 percent still increased their total giving, with an impressive 27 percent of companies having increased their giving by 10 percent or more.

Landmark Lightings

On the evening of International Corporate Philanthropy Day, the Empire State Building in New York and the clock tower of the Wrigley Building in Chicago will light in the colors of ICPD, blue and green, to mark the occasion.

About the Committee Encouraging Corporate Philanthropy

The Committee Encouraging Corporate Philanthropy (CECP) is the only international forum of business CEOs and chairpersons focused exclusively on corporate philanthropy. Co-founded by actor-philanthropist Paul Newman in 1999, CECP’s 175 members lead the business community in raising the level and quality of corporate philanthropy. Membership includes global executives who are committed to advancing the business case for philanthropy and inspiring others to make a positive impact through sustained corporate giving. For more information, visit www.CorporatePhilanthropy.org.

The Innovation Imperative

I set out to write about President Obama’s forward-thinking decision to create an Office of Social Innovation to unleash new approaches to solving problems that have resisted traditional approaches. Even though the office and a related social innovation fund are still in their early planning stages and not even officially been announced, it is already clear to me that they represent a significant opportunity.

By creating this office and fund, President Obama is giving a clear signal of support for principles near and dear to Venture Philanthropy Partners: that the nation must invest in innovation targeted at the public good, that outcomes and impact matter, that dollars should flow preferentially to those who are having the greatest impact in addressing our growing social needs.

But a funny thing happened on the way to that blog item. After sharing a draft with others, wiser than I, to test ideas and “poke the system,” it became apparent that I was missing the forest for the trees. There’s no question that shining the spotlight on social innovation is remarkably important. Yet it will require innovation of the broadest possible breadth and depth if we are to solve our most vexing social challenges.

So instead of focusing on social innovation, I feel compelled to lift up a level and talk about innovation more broadly. I am convinced that, amid the many challenges facing our President, nothing is more important for the long-term strength of our nation than driving greater levels of innovation across all sectors of our economy, including the nonprofit sector.

From the halls of Congress to the rural towns in our heartland, we simply have to come to grips with the fact that the rest of the world is no longer ceding the role of lead innovator to America. Emerging powers like China are seriously challenging us in our core competency. As the journalist James Fallows concludes in an outstanding cover story in this month’s Atlantic Monthly, “China [is using the economic downturn] to design innovative products that will get it the high profits and the high-value jobs Americans kept to themselves for decades. And that is very bad news for the United States, unless it uses tough times to reinvent itself, too.”

Source: The Stanford Innovation Review.

Civic Ventures founder Marc Freedman calls Chris Farrell’s new book, The New Frugality, a roadmap to “a more sustainable lifestyle in America.” In an interview with Marci Alboher of Civic Ventures, Farrell explains why adopting a healthy attitude toward money may help you find your true calling.

Broadband Internet and mobile technologies now reach even the most remote corners of the world, making us all more immediately connected than ever before. This is particularly the case during times of natural disaster, when connectivity—from tweeting one’s location from under a pile of rubble to accessing life-saving information—can materially affect the outcome for victims and empower them to lead their own rescue efforts.

Experts at Emory University’s Goizueta Business School believe we need to continue the spread of mobile technology to help shape and, eventually, drastically improve disaster response strategies. “We can’t control the outcomes of disasters,” says Benn Konsynski, chaired professor of information systems & operations management at Goizueta, “but technology can hopefully influence them.”
http://knowledge.emory.edu/article.cfm?articleid=1308

Why Design Matters

Good design does not always equal good business. But good business outcomes—especially when the goal is to create new sources of value in the world—are most often achieved through a well-structured design process that is more holistic and inclusive than the notion of good design.

All of the energy fed into the debate about the value of good design to the world of commerce would be better-spent building ways to make holistic design a routine activity in business—and society. Here are three ways to get us there:

Stop Treating Design as A Noun

When we talk about it as such, the world stops listening and starts wondering which color the designers are going to pick for the drapes. Unfortunately, good design has come to stand for something akin to “style,” largely a relativistic judgment of aesthetics and semiotics informed by a constantly shifting zeitgeist. I’m as much a fan and consumer of aesthetically pleasing things as the next guy, but I fear that much of what passes for good design is actually a class of shallow luxury goods aimed at a specific set of market demographics and psychographics. And these goods don’t represent the creation of lasting value in the world: In the parlance of soul group Tower of Power; what is hip today quickly becomes passé.

By Diego Rodriguez

Diego Rodriguez is a partner at the design and innovation firm IDEO. He is also a professor at Stanford’s d.school, where he teaches classes about business design and entrepreneurship. His blog metacool has a passionate following among people who spend their lives trying to make a dent in the universe.

Also:

Take a look at any list of the top global brands—including the It’s no accident that many of the world’s top brands are also design leaders. Design is a fundamental part of creating an image and experience of luxury, exclusivity, and tribal belonging. And yet the consumers who purchase these items often select them because they see a little bit of themselves (or who they would like to be) on the shelf. That’s great design. The 80% of new products that fail each year show that marketing and promotions can boost the impact of a good concept, but they can rarely compensate for a poor one.

Source: Bloomberg BusinessWeek.

The Profit in Nonprofit
Kiva, the first online peer-to-peer microcredit marketplace, is one of the fastest-growing nonprofits in history. But its nonprofit status was not inevitable. Here’s why Kiva chose to be a 501(c)(3), what this tax status buys the organization, and how being a nonprofit poses challenges.

The Charitable Advantage

Although Flannery and Jackley had not raised any real start-up capital, Kiva attracted a passionate, talented, and dedicated crew, fueled by Kiva’s mission. The team grew quickly to include heads of partnerships, marketing, technology, and public relations. Many of the 23 full-time employees—most of them in their 20s and 30s—worked pro bono for months. “It was easy to feel ownership of the project,” Jackley recalls. “When you know that a big dream relies on you, it’s inspiring.”

Source: Stanford Social Innovation Review.

The ‘Luxury Prime’: How Money Changes People

Does money change everything?

If not everything, it does seem to have an important effect on human cognition and decision-making, according to new research on a link between luxury goods and self-interest.

Could such insights help rein in Wall Street? Roy Y.J. Chua of Harvard Business School discusses findings from his work conducted with Xi Zou of London Business School.