Q&A with Valerie Red-Horse Mohl of Social Venture Circle

As we get ready to host our 4th annual Innovations in Corporate Social Impact summit, in partnership with Social Venture Circle, we sat down with SVC Executive Director Valerie Red-Horse Mohl to get her take on the growing field of social impact from her 30+ years of experience.

WHY IS CORPORATE SOCIAL IMPACT AN IMPORTANT TOPIC?

The global economy is approximately $87 trillion – non-profit philanthropic entities and governments comprise $600 billion of that – the remaining trillions of dollars are all business revenue. It should be clear that if we are going to meet the SDGs and solve some of our most urgent issues – corporate business must be involved.

HOW DO SENIOR LEADERS IN LARGE COMPANIES VIEW CORPORATE SOCIAL IMPACT?

It varies – I have met with corporate leaders that have a wide spectrum of attitudes from deep dedication (like Unilever), to mild interest to actual animosity towards the concept.

YOUNG PROFESSIONALS SEEM TO BE QUITE INTERESTED IN CORPORATE SOCIAL IMPACT, WHAT IS DRIVING THEIR INTEREST?

I see deep interest and commitment from my students at Stanford and they are very young (18-22); I feel our younger generations are more in touch with the reality they and their children may face if change does not occur and the SDGs are unmet.

 

WHAT PROFESSIONAL OPPORTUNITIES ARE AVAILABLE FOR THOSE WHO WANT TO TRANSITION INTO A COMPANY THAT IS DEDICATED TO INCREASING SOCIAL IMPACT?

The entire social impact, ESG, Corporate Sustainability sectors are fairly new and growing so there are many more opportunities now than ever before.  The challenge is to really shift the culture in a corporate entity it takes a team effort so one position does not typically work – we are seeing the most effective change by those corporates who are actually creating dedicated departments, divisions and strong teams and also working with non-profits and outside experts.

 

WHAT WILL HELP COMPANIES DRIVE MORE SOCIAL IMPACT? (FOR EXAMPLE, ADDITIONAL SENIOR LEADERSHIP SUPPORT, OTHER?)

Collaboration and partnerships!  There is no need to re-invent the wheel – there are groups that have been focused on deep and meaningful social impact for decades and can collaborate to accelerate any corporation’s impact best practices. 

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Accelerating Impact Through Social Entrepreneurship: Q&A with Pamela Roussos