Chris Polk Blog

The intersection of philanthropy & business

7/1/2017

Chris Polk - Philanthropy & Business Book Cover

Navigating the Intersection of Philanthropy and Business by Chris Polk

A Master Guide for Fundraising Executives, Nonprofit Board Members and Corporate Leaders

Philanthropy and Business often mirror each other in both practice and approach. Although global changes in policy, culture and finance will always impact both sectors, we know that there are core strategies which we can deploy in order to increase organizational efficiency, innovation, team work and fundraising success. As an Executive level decision maker, it is your responsibility to guide an organization, to make critical decisions regarding strategy and to create a strong vision for the future.
This guide will provide you with proven best practices which are designed specifically to help you apply the principles of fundraising and further develop a sustainable culture of philanthropy within your organization.

Pre-order a copy NOW. Available on Amazon.com soon

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Standing By Social Entrepreneurs in Detroit

4/17/2017

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Chris Polk (Detroit) - "Social Entrepreneurs continue to take a stand in Detroit" #philanthropymatters

The idea of “social entrepreneurship” has struck a chord in Detroit and I believe it is a very powerful movement. The idea combines the passion of a social mission with an image of business-like discipline, innovation, and determination commonly associated with, for instance, the high-tech pioneers of the previous decade. The time is certainly ripe for entrepreneurial approaches to social problems. Many governmental and philanthropic efforts have fallen far short of our expectations. Major social sector institutions are often viewed as inefficient, ineffective, and unresponsive. Social entrepreneurs are needed to develop new models for a new time here in Detroit.

The language of social entrepreneurship may not be new, but the strategies and metrics are still developing globally. We have always had social entrepreneurs, even if we did not call them that. They originally built many of the institutions we now take for granted. However, the new name is important in that it implies a blurring of sector boundaries. In addition to innovative not-for-profit ventures, social entrepreneurship can include social purpose business ventures, such as for-profit community development banks, and hybrid organizations mixing not-for-profit and for-profit elements, such as homeless shelters that start businesses to train and employ their residents.

Though the concept of social entrepreneurship is gaining popularity, it means different things to different people. Many associate social entrepreneurship exclusively with not-for-profit organizations starting for-profit or earned-income ventures. Others use it to describe anyone who starts a not-for-profit organization. Still others use it to refer to business owners who integrate social responsibility into their operations. What does “social entrepreneurship” really mean? In my opinion it simply means “doing well and doing good” at the same time. The phenomena applies to both small and large business alike and the fundamentals are rooted in how a company engages in the community and how it uses its brand, its products and its assets for a particular cause or area of IMPACT.

Look for more companies and small business in Detroit to continue to explore theses strategies and to launch initiatives in neighborhoods like Corktown, Eastern Market University District and West Village. Good things are on the horizon as the business and social sectors across Michigan continue to collaborate and create a shared vision.

#philanthropymatters

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Business in Detroit is Growing

3/19/2017

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Chris Polk (Detroit) - Comcast Business Engagement event 2017

When it comes to entrepreneurship and new business, Detroit is certainly moving up the charts.

According to the 2012 U.S. Census, the city of Detroit has nearly 62,000 businesses, many of them small businesses. That total included more than 47,000 and 38,000 minority- and women-owned businesses, respectively.

When it comes to minority-owned businesses, Detroit is the fourth-largest city in the country. However, longer-term sustainability and growth continue to be a challenge.
Part of the solution is the participation and collaboration of companies like Comcast who recently announced it will invest $3 million over the next year in its local business and social impact network to build fiber throughout the city, providing a new service with one-gigabit speeds.

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leading healthcare & philanthropy

2/13/2017

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Richard Besser, MD, former acting director for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and ABC News’ current chief health and medical editor, has been named president and chief executive officer of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF), the nation’s largest charitable foundation devoted exclusively to health and health care.Dr. Besser will succeed Risa Lavizzo-Mourey, MD, who has led the $10 billion foundation for the last 14 years. During her tenure, the Foundation has focused its programmatic efforts on broad and important topics such as reducing childhood obesity, promoting health equity, expanding health coverage, and building a Culture of Health in America.

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Design Thinking for success

1/5/2017

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Detroit- Chris Polk (r) and Edmund Lewis (l)

The problem of the absence of data in the logic + data + emotions equation means that both logic and emotions have to be exceedingly strong. Strong logic alone is not enough to generate commitment to a new idea because logic alone makes us emotionally uncomfortable. Similarly, appealing singularly to emotions makes us uncomfortable too. We know that we aren’t being rigorous if we make a commitment to a new idea on the basis of emotions alone.

Thus, great intervention design requires attention to both logic and emotions – equally. Commitment is possible only when driven by a strong combination of both of them. Fortunately, the tools of design thinking, which have for many years been used to create great new ideas, can also be brought to bear on the methods of gaining support for those ideas – or what we in design thinking call “the intervention.”

This is a wonderful article from the Harvard Business Review
Read it now

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Philanthropy and Business Integration

The intersection of philanthropy & business

Standing By Social Entrepreneurs in Detroit

Business in Detroit is Growing

leading healthcare & philanthropy

Design Thinking for success

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