Issue #4: The not-so-subtle art of giving.

As we head into #GivingTuesday, it’s hard to ignore how hard it is to ignore the people and companies who take every opportunity to signal how much money they give. Social media has democratized brand-building, and now everyone’s a philanthropist. In most ways, this is a good thing. It normalizes good behavior in ways that moral constructs have only historically been able to do. But is it enough?

Giving isn’t an ad campaign. It shouldn’t be a distraction from all the taking. If you’re even partially responsible for your company’s (or your employees’) giving efforts, ask yourself if what you give and who you give to is a reflection of your company’s shared values, mission, and purpose. Then ask yourself if you know what your nonprofit partners’ (non-fundraising) goals are. Then ask yourself if you’re doing enough to help them achieve those goals.

While giving money helps nonprofits do the work they need to do in the field, consider whether you’re actually being the best partner you can be. What if your company acted not only as a donor, but more like an API that nonprofits could build upon to multiply their efforts?

As you look ahead to 2020, please, continue to give, but think about (or better yet, ask) what else you can do to be a force multiplier for your nonprofit partners and help them make an even bigger impact — your partners, teams, and their communities, will benefit greatly.

-- Ian

What's Good.

Patagonia opens up. Normally, Patagonia likes to keep things close to the vest (??) when it comes to talking about it’s marketing. It’s worth digging into this interview with Corley Kenna (Director of Global Communications & Public Relations), and Lisa Pike Sheehy (VP of Environmental Activism), to learn more about how they translate their very well-known purpose into their marketing and communications efforts. Spoiler — it all works because of transparency and authenticity.

Woke-washed out. You can’t stop lazy. It’s all too easy for a brand to market its way into purpose — it’s a lot harder to transform the business around it. Here’s some good advice to prevent your brand from falling into the trap — even if it’s with the best intentions.

Words matter. At Forbes’ CMO Summit in Europe, it was interesting to hear marketers speak beyond their own efforts, and call out their responsibility as creators of content and media to use more appropriate words and messaging.

Klimat control. IKEA is investing $200 million to become a “climate positive business”. But it isn’t just about doing right by the environment — it’s also about growth. "Our ambition is to reduce more greenhouse gas emissions in absolute terms by 2030 than the entire Ikea value chain emits, while growing the Ikea business," said Inter Ikea Group's CEO, Torbj?rn L??f. IKEA is yet another company managing the expectations of investors — and humanity — by being so transparent with its mission that they acknowledge that their emissions may actually grow over the next couple of years before they start to see the benefits.

The thin line between D&I. There are many, many studies that show that a diverse company is a stronger company. But diversity doesn’t help without systemic inclusion. That means not just improving hiring practices, but improving mentoring practices. If you need data to support all of this, there are links to good research in here.

America’s idiosyncratic system of philanthropy. Axios did an enlightening deep dive on the pros and the cons of America’s top-down version of philanthropy. It begs the question: do we want to live in a benevolent aristocracy? Or should we build levers that enable us to change systems from the bottom-up?

Don’t sweat the technik? As German automakers race to all-electric fleets, they have to also reckon with the markets, and brace them for losses [FT, you may encounter a paywall] that they will encounter along their path to the future. The competition is fierce, as Hyundai recently unveiled a car with a solar roof.

Goooooooooooal (tracker). Check out this great data tracker that charts countries’ progress towards the UN’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals.

The purpose discount? This HBR piece is more provocative than it may let on. 9 out of 10 people are willing to earn less money to do more-meaningful work. It’s even better news for their employers (and productivity), as employees who say they do meaningful work, spend one additional hour per week working, and take two fewer days of paid leave per year. While this may read as “good for business” all around, i hope this isn’t an excuse to trade purpose for cost savings.

It’s not just what you do, it’s how we find out about it. According to a new survey from Blis, authenticity & transparency are the key drivers of brand selection. In other words, “purpose” isn’t just a marketing or ad campaign. How people feel about your brand is dependent upon how well you tell the story of what you’re actually doing as a company. Ignore substance at your peril.

The five ways work culture will change by 2030. Company culture is the second most important factor candidates consider when applying for jobs at a company, and it’s affecting the way companies are built — and rebuilt. As companies transform around sustainability and purpose, keep an eye on these changes that will likely to occur at nearly every place of employment.

Weird story of the week: Daughters as CEO accessory. This WSJ piece is strange to me in that it highlights a study on how CEOs with daughters index as being more “socially responsible”, yet seems to infer that all CEOs are men. Why not just mint more female CEOs?

And that's a wrap. A new edition of Kindred's Good for Business drops every Monday. If you enjoy this, please share it with your colleagues and friends.

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