Partnering with Women s Funds for Social Investment

Transcription

1 Partnering with Women s Funds for Social Investment

2 Women Across the Value Chain Women as Suppliers, Contractors and Distributors Women as Employees Women as Customers Women as Members of Communities in Which Companies Work Women are present all along a corporation s upstream supply chain, from mining raw materials to distributing final products. Women are often an integral part of a corporation s workforce and leadership. Accounting for more than half of the world s population, women represent an enormous potential market for companies. Women play important roles in communities where companies have influence and impact local conditions. These include communities where companies conduct research, source inputs, manufacture, employ, and sell their products. While increasing productivity or sales, customer relationships, access to talent, risk management and/or cost savings may be a company s motivating factors for engaging in women s empowerment, these benefits are not ensured without an approach that addresses the multiple barriers to empowerment that women face. Business case for Women Sept.indd Women s Funds and their grassroots partners are the experts on design and implementation of integrated programs that operate in a multifaceted way to address issues affecting the lives of women and girls. Women s Funds can partner with companies to co-create and implement integrated economic empowerment programs for greater returns and lasting impact. 30/09/5 4:45

3 Investments in Women s Empowerment - A Growing Trend A growing number of corporations and corporate foundations have developed programs aimed at the empowerment of women and girls in recent years. Why? These companies understand that by doing so they can enhance their triple bottomline: social, environmental and financial. Number of Programs by Launch Year: Companies Corporate Foundations Company Bank of America Chevron Coca-Cola Credit Suisse Danone Diageo DKNY ExxonMobil Gap Inc. General Mills Goldman Sachs H&M Conscious Foundation HSBC Intel Kellogg Kraft Levi-Strauss Foundation MAS Holdings McDonalds MetLife MTN Foundation Nestlé Nokia Qualcomm Vodafone Walmart International Center for Research on Women (ICRW) and Dalberg Global Development Advisors research of 3 corporate-funded programs. Based on publicly available data. Business case for Women Sept.indd 3 30/09/5 4:45

4 Value Creation: h Women s Funds Identify and help support effective approaches to social change in specific contexts. Help mitigate risks and ensure program sustainability. Adapt and scale effective approaches. Generate quantitative and qualitative impact data and key performance indicators Communicate the positive impact of these investments on women. What are Women s Funds? Women s Funds are philanthropic organizations that mobilize and invest resources directly and strategically in community efforts to improve the status of women and girls. They have an extended global coverage with a large number of international, regional and national Women s Funds. The strategy of Women s Funds is to invest in financial resources, assets and skills in local women s organizations, and support synergies and networks among them for greater influence, power and impact. The organizations that Women s Funds support address the formal and informal barriers women face by challenging negative norms, attitudes and perceptions, and work to reform laws and policies to ultimately transform society into a more just and equal one. Why Women s Funds? Women s Funds are critical to growing and sustaining collective action for the advancement of women and girls, their families and communities. Their approach to social change: Invest in social impact; Suppor t new and creative strategies; Prioritize learning and adaptation for greater efficiency; Address complex social issues with locally driven and owned solutions; and Facilitate knowledge sharing between women s organizations around the world to strengthen and scale effective solutions. Business case for Women Sept.indd 4 30/09/5 4:45

5 Accelerating Va Partnership with W Research and interviews with corporate executives who are focused on women s empowerment indicate a desire for greater insight on ways to increase the social and business impact of their women s empowerment programs. 8 How can companies more effectively leverage their assets to capture and sustain women s economic empowerment? One strategy that some companies have begun to pursue is to work with partners with expertise on gender-related issues. Yet a key group of experts Women s Funds are often overlooked by corporations. Women s Funds and their grassroots grantee partners often operate in communities that are connected to corporate value chains in a multitude of ways many in hard to reach places. Women s Funds can be excellent strategic partners for corporations because they can: Design efficient, operationally sustainable programs with corporations. Provide in-depth expertise on women s status at local and regional levels. Act as intermediaries between corporate entities and women s organizations operating in local communities and markets. Build companies credibility through existing relationships and partners with those organizations in their communities. 8 Corporate Sector Funding and Women s Rights- Perceptions, Language, and How to Increase Engagement: Top Ten Research Findings and Ideas for Further Exploration. Assemblyfor, June 04. Business case for Women Sept.indd 5 30/09/5 4:45

6 What s Driving this Corporate Social Investment Trend? Increasing sales Many global corporations are seeking to expand beyond their core consumer base by growing business in emerging markets where women are recognized as key. According to research by Boston Consulting Group, in the next five years, the global incomes of women will grow from US $3 trillion to US $8 trillion. That incremental US $5 trillion is almost twice the growth in GDP expected from China and India combined. By the year 08, women will control close to 75% of discretionary spending worldwide. In addition, The World Bank Group found that women own about a third of all businesses in the world, and nearly half of those businesses are in developing markets. 3 Supply chain efficiency Companies are increasingly aware that addressing the needs of women throughout their global value chain will improve quality and productivity, enhancing their bottom line. Research by USAID found that when women farmers have access to the same amount of land as men, there is more than 0 percent increase in crop yields. In addition, if women had the same access to productive resources as men do, they could increase farm yields by 0 to 30 percent, and reduce by up to 50 million the number of hungry people globally. 4 Access to talent and employee retention With increasing numbers of women entering the professional workforce, many companies understand that creating opportunities for the professional advancement of women employees is a valuable investment. In addition, many companies realize that incoming professionals are interested in working for companies that play an active role in creating positive social value. McKinsey s report Diversity Matters found that companies in the top quartile for gender diversity are 5 percent more likely to have financial returns above their respective national industry medians. 5 A study by Net Impact found that employers who provide workers with tangible ways to make positive social or environmental impact have more engaged and productive employees. 6 Brand reputation There is a growing desire from consumers and other stakeholders (in the workplace, marketplace, community, and supply chain) for companies to go beyond corporate social responsibility and integrate social and environmental considerations into the way they do business. A study by the global advertising agency Havas found that for every 0% increase in meaningfulness, a brand can increase its purchase and repurchase intent by 6% and price premiums by 0.4%. 7 Risk management A top concern for many companies is reputation management. Investing in women and girls in partnership with expert organizations helps to mitigate potential challenges in their business, such as negative media exposure and controversies due to bad practices or working conditions. Boston Consulting Group, Navigating the New Consumer Realities, Consumer Sentiment, World Bank, Expanding Women s Access to Financial Services February USAID, Feed the future, Women s Empowerment in Agriculture Fact Sheet, August Diversity Matters: McKnsey & Company, Net Impact s Talent Report: What Workers Want 0 Net Impact and Heldrich Center for Workforce Development at Rutgers University Meaningful Brands. Havas, 05. This report concludes that so-called meaningful brands enjoyed increased sales, better brand awareness and higher annual returns than other companies. Business case for Women Sept.indd 6 30/09/5 4:45

7 An Integrated Approach to Women s Economic Empowerment An Integrated Approach Currently, the majority of corporate programs for the empowerment of women support their economic roles through access to training, mentoring, networks, markets, and financial resources. Yet a recent report by International Center for Research on Women and Dalberg Global Development Advisors of some of the largest corporate-funded women s economic empowerment programs concluded that, for companies to succeed in economically empowering women, a more effective strategy is to build an integrated approach that addresses the underlying structural barriers to women s economic empowerment. 7 An integrated approach for women s economic empowerment consists of eight building blocks and extends across a company s value chain. It is a strategic framework designed to create lasting social and financial value. 8 Building Blocks Access to equitable 5 and safe employment Education and 6 training Sustainable, Impactful Economic Empowerment for Women 3 Access to and 7 control over economic resources and opportunities 4 Voice in society 8 and policy influence Freedom from the risk of violence Freedom of movement Access to and control over health and family formation Social protection and childcare Adopting an integrated approach results in greater impact across the value chain and incorporates the benefits of women s empowerment into a company s core business, while contributing to the larger effort to improve the lives of women globally. Business case for Women Sept.indd 7 30/09/5 4:45

8 Case Studies of Partnership Although most companies do not yet partner with socially-driven organizations, a few companies have realized the value of working with Women s Funds, with positive results. Here are two examples: Johnson & Johnson and the Global Fund for Women The Global Fund for Women (GFW) a USbased nonprofit and Johnson & Johnson have partnered on women s empowerment for over 7 years. Working with the GFW enables Johnson & Johnson to connect with hard-to-reach women in countries with high maternal mortality rates. Through their network of grassroots women s organizations and community-based programs, the GFW is able to identify partner organizations and facilitate their collaboration with Johnson & Johnson. To date, the partnership between GFW and Johnson & Johnson has supported the training of 4,000 birth attendants and improved the health care access of 35,000 women. This partnership greatly enhances Johnson & Johnson s social responsibility impact. Semillas and Fundación Banorte Fundación Banorte, a Mexican bank foundation and Semillas, a Mexican Women s Fund have been working together since 0. Initially, Banorte supplied small donations to compliment existing grantee projects. But in 04, Semillas began to assist Fundación Banorte with their strategic planning, including evaluation procedures and fundraising strategies in order to increase their social impact for women in Mexico. Fundación Banorte then decided to partner with Semillas to fund a new, broader project that uses art and communication to advance women s rights in Mexico. Through this partnership, Semillas received funding for their work and developed an innovative project. Banorte was able to tap into the rich network of the Fund to reach 3,000 women clients in Mexico. Connecting with Women s Funds The best way to develop effective women s economic empowerment programs is for companies to partner with expert organizations to develop transformative initiatives for women s empowerment that will bring lasting returns for women and business. The International Network of Women s Funds is the hub of a global network of more than 40 Women s Funds. In addition to enhancing resources, connections and capacities of Women s Funds, INWF connects them to the private sector, government, international non-governmental organizations, bi-lateral institutions, foundations and individual donors. For more information on how to find the appropriate women s fund partner, contact the INWF s Executive Director Emilienne Aulina: inwfexecutive@gmail.com. An Intiative of the Win Win Coalition The Win-Win Coalition brings together corporations and others from the private and public sectors committed to women s empowerment. The coalition supports and develops cross-sector collaborations to mobilize resources and co-create sustainable programs supporting women and girls worldwide. For more information, visit: Business case for Women Sept.indd 8 30/09/5 4:45