Corporate Social Responsibility Network Newsletter – April

[vc_toggle title=”Read More”]Map it out. According to Zheng, “the playbook has changed.” People want to see sustained progress, not one-off actions. It’s critical to plan before moving forward. Create your messaging strategy by aligning words with values, thinking about your vision for the future and considering the actions you intend to take.

Expand the room. Include diverse voices in your decision-making. There is no shortage of diverse talent and expertise available to the business world today. According to a 2019 Gartner survey, “gender-diverse and inclusive teams outperform gender-homogenous, less inclusive teams by 50% on average.” Involve professionals, staff, consultants and partners of all identities in your road-mapping process. Including more voices will help ensure your choices are reflective of today’s world.

Take Accountability. According to Edelman’s 2021 Trust Barometer, 56% of survey participants feel that “business leaders are purposely trying to mislead people by saying things that are false or gross exaggerations.” Transparency is critical. Social media platforms have provided staff and stakeholders the opportunity to hold businesses accountable for their actions – and people are exercising their voices. As Zheng said, “no amount of saying can replace effective doing.” When you talk the talk, be sure to also walk the walk.

In the wake of 2020, it is vital we remain nimble, true to our values and responsive to society’s needs. This is hard work. It takes time and commitment. But when done right, it makes a meaningful impact.[/vc_toggle]

[vc_toggle title=”Read More”]As you well know, the sustainability space is rapidly evolving. Can you talk a little about what you do to remain up to date on today’s sustainability issues?
I talk to as many people as I can who are smarter than I am on the issues, and who come from very different mindsets and points of view. I also read a ton. We run a weekly media and research scan called the APCO Impact Insider, which helps me (and our clients) stay on top of emergent themes and trends. We have been doing it for years, so we’re able to spot new ideas, shifts in the different debates, and even areas of white space that need attention.

You spent some time working in political advance (on campaigns and with the Obama Administration). Can you talk a little bit about how advance work has impacted your professional journey?
My first job doing advance work came on the heels of my master’s program in international development and after many years living in Southeast Asia. A good amount of my personal and professional energy at that point was spent thinking about the root causes of poverty and conflict, and the responsibility we all share in driving equity and justice regardless of where the need is. Growing up middle class in the heart of Manhattan, I was absolutely blind to the level of poverty and exclusion that exists in communities across the U.S. Advance changed that for me, and my fight became close to home in the years that followed.

In your role at APCO, you are leading some exciting social impact and sustainability initiatives. What are you rolling out? Has the change in administration impacted the design and execution of your new work?
We just launched APCO Impact, which is the culmination of what we have been building at APCO. It’s a fully integrated offer, which brings together our expertise across climate and sustainability, corporate purpose and ESG, equity and justice, and philanthropy. We’ve brought in some incredible new talent, including Heather McGeory to lead our climate work (and who just stepped down as COO at We Mean Business), and all of the amazing talent from our acquisition of Global Philanthropy Group in January. Combining this talent with the powerhouse brain trust across APCO’s global footprint has been a real gamechanger. The change in Administration has had some impact – certainly we’ve seen the U.S. in a central role again on major issues like climate change, but these issues (and the response to them) were accelerating regardless. The investor focus on ESG, for instance, has been a huge motivating factor for companies to accelerate the adoption of ESG approaches.

What is one thing you like to do outside of work?
These days? Anything that doesn’t involve zoom feels like a luxury! I spend most of my off hours delighting in my 3-year-old daughter and renovating my 120-year-old farmhouse in upstate New York.

What is one thing that you are most looking forward to once the country recovers from the pandemic?
Having mask-less dinners with friends every night of the week![/vc_toggle]

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