Having been active in social justice movements since the 1960s, I would’ve liked for us to be further along than we are now. You might imagine that I’m a bit fatigued, even disheartened, six decades later. To the contrary, I’m as fired up as ever. I’m especially inspired by young activists around the world who are tackling myriad interrelated issues in new, dynamic, exciting ways. It’s called intersectional organizing, integrating, among much else: calls for an end to violent conflicts, enlivening the climate change debate, addressing gender inequality, demands for economic equity, actions for racial justice, demonstrations for LGBTQ rights, protests for gun control—all parts of a unified fervent appeal for a more inclusive, sustainable world. I had extraordinary mentors... more

beCause CEO Nadine Hack’s opening keynote at Stockholm Philanthropy Symposium – Other speakers will address with great wisdom myriad specifics on philanthropy, impact investing, corporate responsibility, social innovations, digital platforms, partnerships, gender equity and more. So, to start, I’ll share a meta framework about what I call connectedness because I believe it’s at the core of all those topics and, actually, everything. You can watch video of presentation. First, please turn to someone near who you don’t already know and introduce yourselves. Take a minute max each so the two introductions will take two minutes max. Go ahead! [participants interact] How many of you basically shared your name, where you’re from and what you do? That’s kind of like the... more

By beCause Associate Ravi Chaudhry — Business has been the most powerful institution on the planet since the second half of the twentieth century. Dr Willis Harman, co-founder of the World Business Academy in 1987 put forward the view that the dominant institution in any society needs to take responsibility for the whole, as the church did in the days of the Holy Roman Empire. Built into the original concept of capitalism and free enterprise was the assumption that the actions of many individual enterprises, responding to the market forces and guided by the ‘invisible hand’ of Adam Smith, would somehow add up to desirable outcomes. But it is amply clear that the ‘invisible hand’ is faltering. It depended on a... more

by beCause CEO Nadine Hack – Welsh proverb: “She/he who would be a leader must be a bridge.”  What I call engagement leaders are, indeed, “bridges” connecting divergent types of people for the advantage of each and all.  They know that deeply engaging internal and external stakeholders in the co-creation of business changes and new initiatives is vital for any strategic action plan to be properly executed. Nelson Mandela is an archetypal engagement leader.  After 27 brutal years in prison, he emerged as a fervent advocate of engaging with the very people and institutions that oppressed him.  When released, he spent the next four years in negotiation with the stalwarts of apartheid.  As President, he continued to ensure that all... more

By beCause Associate Jennifer Sertl – Sibos is an annual event that connects over 8,000 people from 212 countries from the entire financial ecosystem. Having gone for three years myself, this year marked a visceral tipping point between the traditional compliance oriented banking community and the innovative emergence of blockchain technology. Globalization and open data have made an undeniable imprint that will continue to force new mindsets across the industry. There are several experts in this space and I invite you to take a deep dive into blockchain technology and the implications with Don Tapscott. Beyond how this technology enables global business functionality, I want to highlight another technology- namely, leadership. There were three people in particular who stood out with a... more

by beCause CEO Nadine Hack – In his 1859 classic, A Tale of Two Cities, Charles Dickens compared life in Paris and London before and during the French Revolution when he wrote “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.”  And if you look at the history of humankind at any time – particularly when we’ve made tectonic global transitions: the Agrarian Age, the Industrial Revolution, and now the Digital Revolution – you also see the best and worst simultaneously. There always have been opposing forces: “dark” (e.g.: nationalism, tribalism, fear and hatred of “the other”) vs. “light” (e.g.: empathy, bridge-building, inclusiveness and striving for freedom and human dignity of all human beings). It’s no different... more

by beCause Associate Andrea Learned — One of the more challenging things for business leaders to understand about social media is how much it is about sharing “love.” When I bring it up with clients, I usually need to pause for the “wait… what?” response. The general concept may demand an extra mindset shift for those in the business-to-business (B2B) world. More pointedly, I’ve realized that being open to receiving this social media “love” is even harder for most to grasp than the idea of giving it. And, no. it’s not just you. This does sound suspiciously like relationship self-help. But, after meeting another leader whose contributions would amplify her company’s innovative work — if only she’d bring her voice and wisdom to social media — I’m convinced... more

by beCause CEO Nadine Hack – Successful businesses have moved from transactional to relational, which acknowledges interdependence among a diversity of parties as essential for sustainable success.  Dramatic new technologies, evolving business models, environmental impact, economic instability, political upheaval, and broad-scale migration resulting from regional conflicts, now demand improved engagement between business leaders and their myriad stakeholders. A broad spectrum of stakeholders has a direct impact on your core business. That’s why I call my framework “Strategic Relational Engagement” (SRE) because incorporating meaningful relationships into your business can transform stakeholder fear and/or animosity into understanding, productivity and strategic impact.  In a shareholder environment in which annual growth is expected (achievable or not), all-out strategic relational engagement of stakeholders is the... more

Guest post by Cynthia Lardner who interviewed Nadine B. Hack -“I had the opportunity to interview a woman I admire tremendously and we had a wonderful conversation about how she came to be a woman of conviction respected globally.” CL: What influenced you when you were young and who were your role models? NBH: My grandmother was an extraordinary woman, dedicated to helping others.  She immigrated to the US from what was then Russia (now Ukraine) to escape Tsarist pogroms.  I grew up in an building where our extended family lived (her brothers, sisters, their children and grandchildren).  She taught me that when I went to the bakery I should ask the price of today and yesterday’s bread: then, after... more