STORIES

SHIFT Conversations

On May 5, 2022, RESET Leadership conveners, B Lab, The B Team and Imperative 21, hosted Resetting Leadership, the 4th in a series of Shift Conversations.  Here you will find information about the panel and resources mentioned by panelists to help you get inspired, find applicable resources and tools, and dive deeper in learning how business and community leaders are working to unlock solutions together to the pressing social, economic and environmental challenges we face. 

Panel Description

Business has a critical role and moral obligation in meeting the social, economic, and environmental challenges we face. While there is more expectation than ever on business leaders to address societal issues, especially those challenges it helped create, business alone does not have all the answers.

Many solutions may in fact already exist – among the communities and individuals that experience the consequences of these issues most acutely. Yet such communities are often overlooked as a source of ideas and partnership for change, including those most affected by systemic discrimination and racism. This session presents the recent stories of how business leaders – partnering with the communities and individuals – have shown it’s possible to unlock solutions.

In this discussion, you’ll hear from companies, community members, and change agents collaborating to transform leadership and the rules that shape leadership behavior to meet the challenges of the 21st century and create a new norm of shared well-being on a healthy planet.

Panelists:

Julie Anding, VP, Inclusive Stakeholder Management at Harley Davidson

Matthew Phifer, Vice President, Education & Employment Services at Henry Street Settlement

Hugues Sygney Jr., Senior Racial Equity Program Manager at B Lab

Moderator:

Akira Nakahara, Chief Strategy and Marketing Officer at Imperative 21

Sesssion Links:
Video of Panel Discussion (Coming Soon)

Resources and Articles Mentioned by Panelists:

Julie Anding, VP, Inclusive Stakeholder Management at Harley Davidson:

  • Resource: Appreciate Inquiry / An overview of an asset-based approach to organizational and social engagement that utilizes questions and dialogue to help participants uncover existing strengths, advantages, or opportunities in their communities, organizations, or teams.
  • Feature: Appreciative Inquiry Summit Summary (video) / How Near West Side Partners, co-founded by Harley-Davidson, utilized the Appreciative Inquiry Framework to bring together community stakeholders – from residents to business leaders, government officials to non-profit organizations – for a conversation about the future of Milwaukee’s Near West Side.

Matthew Phifer, Vice President, Education & Employment Services at Henry Street Settlement:

  • Interview: Henry Street adopts $22 minimum wage (article): Looking at the decision by Henry Street to choose to adopt new $22/hour min. wage in light of the inadequacy of NYC’s $15 min. What are the challenges of offering a higher minimum wage for a non-profit and how it can be viewed as a moral obligation towards achieving economic justice?

Hugues Sygney Jr.  Senior Racial Equity Program Manager at B Lab:

  • Resource: CEO Blueprint for Racial Equity: PolicyLink, FSG, JUST Capital, and Living Cities invite corporations, racial equity experts, funders, investors, and other experts to support and collaborate with B Lab in developing guidelines that can guide businesses in analyzing their impact on racial equity. Presenting an invitation and roadmap to help companies understand and address the intended and unintended consequences of all their products, policies, and practices on people of color, and by extension, our economy and democracy.

  • Resource: The Climate Justice Playbook for Business: This resource created by B Lab, the COP26 Climate Champions Team, Provoc, and the Skoll Centre for Social Entrepreneurship at the University of Oxford is a practical guide that will help business leaders understand the intersection of climate action and social justice and advance a justice-centered approach to climate action.

  • Resource: Earth Month 2022: Climate Justice Toolkit: This resource was created to help businesses engage in reflection, learning and action around climate justice. The toolkit includes a climate justice reflection challenge, glossary, and various calls to action.