Episode 19: 17th May 2018

Episode 19, after a week off for good behaviour we are back in circulation and focusing our attention on doing good work.

In the modern world running a business is about so much more than turning a profit. With increasing demands for business to consider the environment, local communities and staff wellbeing we felt it was about time to consider how we, as business people can keep ourselves ‘in check’ with regard to  Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR).

Some say that having a clear policy with regard to CSR leads to business success and ultimately the bottom line and there are many case studies that prove this point and we found a few surprises in our research one being high street food outlet and sausage rollers Greggs. Their list of Board Committees alone gives an indication of how seriously they take CSR and full details of just how far they take this can be found at The Greggs Foundation.

If you think your business has got what it takes or you simply want to learn from the best, why not visit The BITC Responsible Business Awards to see what others are doing.

Our events list this week stick with the CSR theme with a bit of Innovation thrown in for good measure

• Net Impact Approaches Conference
• Institute of Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability (ICRS) Application Clinic
• Making Tax Digital
• Innovation and Intellectual Property for Business

When it comes to reviews this week we have something ‘other worldly’ to share. Google launched their new Duplex service and my oh my it’s a game changer.

If you ever doubt your ability to make a difference in the world you might be interested in our book of the week ‘The Promise Of A Pencil’ by Adam Braun. From $25 to 200 schools around the world this is the story of how doing the right thing can change your life, and the lives of others, forever.

To wrap things up we focus on Co Founder of the largest social giving platform Anne Marie Huby who with her colleague Zarine Kharas founded JustGiving.  Although Huby is a very private person, there is no doubt she has made a massive impact on how we all raise and donate funds for even the smallest of charities. Find out more about Huby via this Forward Partners Interview or read this article from The Guardian.

And if you don’t have time for either of the above we’ve picked a couple of quotes that we feel encapsulate what CSR and Huby have in common.

“I am driven by the belief that the ‘for good’ space deserves as much capital, talent, entrepreneurial spirit and innovation as any other industry.”

“Sometimes you need to pretend to have authority”

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