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Kyle Peterson, Marc Pfitzer
Defying the stereotype that all corporate lobbying is self-interested, some companies are using their government affairs staffs and advocacy skills to lobby for important social issues. Mary Kay sends its pink-suited sales reps to Capitol Hill to lobby for re-authorization of the Violence Against Women Act. Cartoon Network empowers kids to lobby for recess in their schools. As a part of strategic CSR, lobbying for good should focus on issues that matter to business. This feature article in the Winter 2009 Stanford Social Innovation Review issue explores how socially responsible lobbying is part of a larger, emerging trend--where CSR draws from all parts of the business, becoming more wholly integrated and vital.
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Marc Pfitzer and Ramya Krishnaswamy
The food & beverage industry has a unique role in expanding economic opportunity because it is universal to human life and health. The industry operates at multiple levels of society where billions of people grow, transform, and sell food, particularly in developing countries where agriculture dominates all other economic sectors. Yet a vast share of these workers cannot both satisfy their immediate consumption needs and earn sufficient income from food markets to improve their lives. This report provides insight into how pioneering large firms are breaking this dilemma and building economic opportunity around food & beverage value chains.
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Adeeb Mahmud and Marcie Parkhurst
This report provides an overview and critical assessment of the ways in which multinational pharmaceutical companies currently participate in expanding economic opportunities in developing countries. The analysis and case studies contained in the report highlight companies’ contributions to economic opportunity expansion through job creation, training and capacity building, and shaping public policy.
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Greg Hills and Adeeb Mahmud
This FSG study is a compilation of best practices in international corporate volunteering (ICV). Sponsored by Pfizer Inc and The Brookings Institution, the study examines ICV within two principal models: local service, in which employees based in countries outside headquarters volunteer in their local communities; and cross-border service, in which employees travel abroad to volunteer.
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This FSG white paper, released in May 2007 and sponsored by Ernst and Young LLP, provides a critical assessment of opportunities for corporations to help transform the U.S. public education system through innovative corporate philanthropy.
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Michael E. Porter and Mark R. Kramer
Moving past generic CSR principles, learn how societal influence is becoming the new frontier of competitive advantage.
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Learn how companies can best engage these multilateral and nonprofit actors.
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Mark Kramer and John Kania
How can corporations truly distinguish themselves through their CSR activity? It requires a radical reshaping of the relationship between corporations and nonprofits.
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Mark Kramer, Marc Pfitzer, and Karin Jestin
This FSG report describes Nestlé's approach to corporate social responsibility through the lens of a new CSR framework by Harvard's Michael Porter and FSG's Mark Kramer that focuses on creating shared value for society and the corporation.
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Michael Porter and Mark Kramer
The authors argue that CSR should be a win-win situation--for society and the corporation.
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Greg Hills
Corporations should consider supplementing traditional grantmaking with targeted investments in for-profit entities that address social problems and drive economic development.
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Mark Kramer, Marc Pfitzer and Kyle Peterson
Under what circumstances should a corporation have a corporate foundation? And how should the roles and responsibilities of the foundation and the corporate giving department be delineated?
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John Kania
This article argues that benchmarking an organization's social impact against that of its peers is a powerful tool to justify activities.
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John Kania and Mindy Oakley
A review of the three primary motivators of corporate philanthropy, and of how the motivation mix can affect results.
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Mark Kramer, Sarah Cooch and Owen Stearns
How one corporate foundation increased its impact--without increasing its giving.
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An interview with Professor Michael E. Porter that focuses on his perspectives on the state of corporate philanthropy and corporate social responsibility.
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Fay Hanleybrown and Mindy Oakley
How Safeco Insurance reviewed its entire portfolio and adopted a comprehensive approach to all corporate contributions.
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Mark Kramer and John Kania
This 2002 article argues that particularly in an environment of pressured investment returns, donors should maximize their impact, by focusing their giving on the areas of their highest social return.
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Mark Kramer
The leverage or value added of a foundation’s matching grant is often illusory.
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