Center for Social Innovation

Effective Use of Social Media Requires Tapping Emotions, Book Says

Authors Jennifer Aaker and Andy Smith explain how to harness the power of social media to achieve social change in their book The Dragonfly Effect.

Resource: News Article

Topic :

Business, Global Issues, Socially Responsible Business, Environment

This Old Green House

Stanford Social Innovation Review: Fall 2010

Clean Energy Works Portland gets consumers—and the workforce—energized about weatherization.

Resource: Stanford Social Innovation Review Article

Topic :

Business, Nonprofits, Social Enterprises, Social Entrepreneurship

Monk, Architect, Diplomat

Stanford Social Innovation Review: Fall 2010

Three types of leadership are needed to build a successful organization.

Resource: Stanford Social Innovation Review Article

Topic :

Nonprofit Management, Philanthropy, Responsible Investing

Scrooge May Really Want to Help

Letting people pretend they are supporting worthy causes because there is something in it for them may increase their participation. Researchers say nonprofit organizations need to recognize the wide range of motives behind donations of both money and time.

Resource: News Article

Topic :

Design Buildings to Make Oxygen, Not Consume It, Counsels Architect William McDonough

Architect and industrial systems designer William McDonough advocates using innovative design to solve major social and environmental problems, such as using buildings to create oxygen as opposed to consuming it.

Resource: News Article

Topic :

Environment, Social Entrepreneurship

Beetles, Snails, and Squirrels Can Help Humans Solve Design Problems

Science writer and author Janine Benyus urged an overflow Stanford Business School audience to look to the world of nature for ways to cool buildings, collect water in the desert, keep pipes from clogging with scale, and manage air traffic. Her speech was sponsored by the School's Center for Social Innovation.

Resource: News Article

Topic :

Conference Highlights Critical Role of Consumer Choice in Health-Related Businesses

The Stanford GSB's fourth-annual health care and biotech conference addressed issues of healthcare affordability. Speaker Ken Dollens, CEO of Guidant, professed the need for transparency and consumer choice in the health and health insurance industries to ensure customers are getting the best quality services and products. Mike Kaplan, MBA '92, partner at Three Arch Partners, echoed the need to publish information on medical outcomes, advocating the concerns of the consumer as a driving force behind innovation and equality.

Resource: News Article

Topic :

Schools Need to Develop Leaders, San Diego Education Chief Tells Conference

In a new joint initiative, Stanford's Graduate School of Business will join the School of Education to share knowledge and help redesign schools for the future. The joint venture opened Oct 23 with a symposium called "Developing Educational Entrepreneurship: Redesigning Schools for the 21st Century."

Resource: News Article

Topic :

Arts, Culture, and Religion, Education

Art Mimics Art

Stanford Social Innovation Review: Summer 2009

Manchester Bidwell Corporation replicates by adapting general strategies to local cultures. —By Suzie Boss

Resource: Stanford Social Innovation Review Article

Topic :

Economic Development

The Parent of Invention

Stanford Social Innovation Review: Summer 2009

RAMP nurtures local inventors in India, Peru, and Indonesia. —By Aaron Dalton

Corporate Social Responsibility

Resource: Stanford Social Innovation Review Article

Topic :

Making the B List

Stanford Social Innovation Review: Summer 2009

The B Corp seal of approval distinguishes truly responsible businesses from mere poseurs. —By Jenna Lawrence

Resource: Stanford Social Innovation Review Article

Topic :

Arts, Culture, and Religion

What's Next: Tweets for Change

Stanford Social Innovation Review: Summer 2009

Tweeters come together for spontaneous gatherings of like-minded philanthropists.

Resource: Stanford Social Innovation Review Article

Topic :

What's Next: Mobilizing Against Fake Drugs

Stanford Social Innovation Review: Summer 2009

Texting emerges as a source of confirmation for drug legitimacy.

Resource: Stanford Social Innovation Review Article

Topic :

How Can Small Nonprofits Fundraise More Successfully?

Telling their stories is a powerful way for nonprofits to fundraise.

Resource: Blog Post

Topic :

Preparing the Next Generation of Nonprofit Leaders

We should be focused on cultivating and developing the leaders we already have in the nonprofit sector, instead of trying to attract 640,000 new ones.

Resource: Blog Post

Topic :

Government, Nonprofit Management

Too Many Nonprofits

An unresponsive political system has spurred the need for nonprofits.

Resource: Blog Post

Topic :

Nonprofit Management, Philanthropy, Responsible Investing

The Axiology of Nonprofit Impact

Is “return on investment” the right measure for evaluating the work of nonprofits?

Resource: Blog Post

Topic :

Nonprofit Management, Philanthropy, Responsible Investing

More on Mergers, Ms. Miller!

Foundations need to create dedicated funding for nonprofit mergers and alliances.

Resource: Blog Post

Video/Audio : All | Audio | Video

Topic:

Human Rights in the Information Age

[photo - Samantha Power, Michael Posner, R. James Woolsey]

How many of us take for granted the simple freedoms and rights we enjoy in this digital age? James Woolsey, past director of the Central Intelligence Agency, leads a fascinating panel discussion on "Human Rights in the Information Age," with Samantha Power and Michael Posner. The panel was part of the Aspen Ideas Festival.

Resource: Audio

Topic:

Nonprofit Management, Philanthropy, Responsible Investing

Evaluation in the Nonprofit Sector

Evaluation is one of the most powerful mechanisms a nonprofit organization can use to unlock its potential, become more effective, and achieve success. But traditional evaluation methods are expensive, require thorough knowledge of the social sciences, and take a good deal of time to perform. In this part of the Stanford Social Innovation Review's conference on evaluation, Mark Kramer details how nonprofits can better incorporate evaluation to achieve their mission and bring about social change.

Resource: Audio

Topic:

Education, Social Entrepreneurship

Fill Rooms With Committed Teachers

Teach For America places thousands of energetic and committed college graduates as teachers in under-resourced schools for their first jobs. In this audio lecture recorded at the Stanford Graduate School of Business, Wendy Kopp shares why and how she started Teach for America in 1980, and its progress in raising the bar for under-achieving children. She also discusses how the organization rode out its "dark years," when enthusiasm and corporate support for the effort began to wane.

Resource: Audio

Topic:

Economic Development, Nonprofit Management, Philanthropy, Responsible Investing, Social Entrepreneurship

Hybrid and For-Profit Business Models - Challenges and Opportunities

How do you use for-profit activities to fund your social entrepreneurship mission? In this panel discussion at the Skoll World Forum, experts talk about how to combine for- and nonprofit activities for greatest effect. They show that business and nonprofit can mix, drawing on examples such as efforts to profitably provide water to poor villagers by training street children to run businesses, and franchising medical care to creating a transparent market place for handmade goods.

Resource: Audio

Topic:

Corporate Social Responsibility, Environment, Social Entrepreneurship

Making Money While Going Green

Scientists predict that we have less than 10 years to sufficiently reduce carbon emissions to avert a total environmental disaster. Gary Hirshberg, Stonyfield Farm "CE-Yo", tells of his company's efforts over the past 25 years to reduce its environmental footprint while increasing profits. Hirshberg shares lessons from his book Stirring It Up: How to Make Money and Save the World, in this Stanford Center for Social Innovation audio lecture.

Resource: Audio

Topic:

Environment, Government, Leadership

Al Gore: Leaders Must Supply Vision, Values & Goals

The Stanford Graduate School of Business View from the Top Series hosted former Vice President Al Gore where he spoke to over 600 students on leadership, solutions for the climate crisis, and sustainable capitalism.

Resource: Video

Topic:

Cutting Greenhouse Gas Emissions: Perspectives from California

California, the ninth largest economy in the world, recently launched a new carbon cap-and-trade system to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to 1990 levels by 2020. Mary Nichols, chair of the California Air Resources Board, leads this program that could provide a model to support other regional or national efforts to cut greenhouse gas emissions.

Resource: Video

Topic:

US-wide Carbon Policy: Two MBAs' Perspectives

As part of the annual Conradin Von Gugelberg Memorial Lecture on the Environment, Mike Volpe, MBA '13, and Jake Saper, MBA '14, lay out an argument for a US-wide carbon policy.

Resource: Video

Topic:

Education for Everyone

Co-founder Andrew Ng, also the Director of the Artificial Intelligence Lab and an associate professor in computer science at Stanford, presented at the Leading Education By Advancing Digital (LEAD) Symposium held at the Stanford Graduate School of Business in September 2012.

Resource: Video

Topic:

James Sweeney: A Sustainable Energy System

James Sweeney, director of Stanford's Precourt Energy Efficiency Center, discusses green cities at a Stanford GSB conference.

Resource: Video

Topic:

Starting and Growing a Social Enterprise

With the Obama administration's focus on social enterprise as a means of solving some of our most pressing problems, the social entrepreneur has emerged as the chief change agent of our time. In this panel discussion, part of the Stanford 2009 Entrepreneurship Week, leaders of several vital organizations talk about the motivations, successes, and challenges associated with running a social enterprise. They consider what the economic downturn has meant to their missions, and they offer practical advice to aspiring entrepreneurs.

Resource: Audio

Topic:

Environment, Government

China's Environmental Sustainability Myths Dispelled

Like Russia, China has been a huge and inefficient user of energy for decades. Now, however, the country is cleaning up its act. In this audio lecture, sponsored by the Stanford Center for Social Innovation, Mark Levine, Lawrence Berkeley Lab energy group director, dispels common American myths about China's energy and environmental practices, demonstrating that the country is becoming surprisingly progressive. He touches on areas such as subsidies, pricing, and emissions policies.

Resource: Audio

Topic:

Leadership, Social Entrepreneurship

Entrepreneurship From a Woman's Perspective

To be a successful entrepreneur you need to ignore your naysayers and have a passion bordering on obsession.

Resource: Video

Topic:

Eric Schmidt of Google: Change Creates Opportunity

"I think this is by far the best time to be graduating, not the worst," says Eric Schmidt (March 10, 2009).

Resource: Video

Topic:

Environment, Social Entrepreneurship

Opportunities in Clean Tech

What is the future of clean tech?

Resource: Video

Case Studies : All | Academic Cases

Topics:

Breaking New Ground: Using the Internet to Scale

Commissioned by KaBOOM! and authored by Katherine Fulton and alumna Heather McLeod Grant of the Monitor Institute, this case study looks at the challenges KaBOOM! faced and lessons the organization learned while pioneering an online strategy to scale its impact. This strategy involves giving away the nonprofit model online for free to empower others to act on KaBoom's behalf.

Resource: Practitioner Case

Topics:

Philanthropy, Responsible Investing

The Shea Value Chain Reinforcement Initiative in Ghana

In 2009, software giant SAP funded an initiative that aims to reinforce the shea nut and butter value chain in Ghana. The program, which also involves microfinance organizations PlaNet Finance, Grameen Ghana and Maata-N-Tudu, uses microfinance, education, and information technology to improve the conditions of shea women. Since enrolling in the program, women have seen significant improvements in income. This case study examines program progress to date and makes recommendations for program improvements using a value chain development framework.

Resource: Academic Case

Topics:

Health Care, Economic Development

Can Oil Filters Improve Health Care?

For millions of people across Africa, motorcycles can be a key to effective health care. A well-maintained fleet of vehicles and motorcycles to connect patients, medical expertise, and medicine is sometimes the most vital link in the health delivery supply chain. A new case written for the Stanford Global Supply Chain Management Forum describes one successful program.

Resource: Academic Case

Topics:

Kiva.org and the Power of Storytelling

This case details the founding story of Kiva, with particular focus on the way that Jessica Jackley and Matt Flannery have stayed true to the original mission by telling authentic stories about entrepreneurs in East Africa, and how those stories have influenced lenders and fellows.

Resource: Academic Case

Topics:

The "Tipping Point" and Green Dot Public Schools

Green Dot is charter management organization that is bringing high-performance to Los Angeles, an area traditionally plagued by dismal graduating case. This case explores Green Dots the advantages and disadvantages of transformative strategy to reach a 'tipping point' in Los Angeles' educational community.

Resource: Academic Case

Topics:

The Siebel Foundation and the Meth Project

This case details the innovative work of business executive Tom Siebel, who launched the Meth Project in 2005 to 'unsell' meth to first time users in Montana. The program used an innovative research-based marketing campaign and has since scaled to other states.

Resource: Academic Case

Topics:

Canary Fund and the San Jose Grand Prix (B): Results of the First Race

The Canary Fund supports the development of methods for early cancer detection. This second case presents the results of the sponsorship created to raise funding and awareness.

Resource: Academic Case

Topics:

Healthcare, Philanthropy, Responsible Investing

The Kinetics and Michael J. Fox Foundations (B): New Directions

The Kinetics and Michael J. Fox Foundations both support research on Parkinson’s disease. This second case explores how these two organizations collaborate toward a common mission.

Resource: Academic Case

Topics:

Environment, Nonprofit Management

Wild Salmon Center

The Wild Salmon Center was created to provide anglers access to excellent fishing in return for funding research and conservation. The case discusses the Center’s efforts to protect the pristine watersheds of the Kamchatka Peninsula by developing ecotourism to raise funds for conservation.

Resource: Academic Case

Topics:

Corporate Social Responsibility, Environment, Social Entrepreneurship

Gardenburger

The CEO of Gardenburger, a seller of veggie burger products and other food alternatives to meat, considers the company’s advertising strategy. He aims to take the company from the small health-food niche to the consumer mainstream.

Resource: Academic Case

Topics:

Government

Transparent Markets: Promoting Public Values Through Private Enterprise

Luis Moreno Ocampo, an attorney who had fought human rights abuses in Argentina, views corruption in public procurement as the next major human rights issue. He established a company to collect and distribute information on public procurements to make the entire process more transparent.

Resource: Academic Case

Topic :

Philanthropy, Responsible Investing

The Shea Value Chain Reinforcement Initiative in Ghana

In 2009, software giant SAP funded an initiative that aims to reinforce the shea nut and butter value chain in Ghana. The program, which also involves microfinance organizations PlaNet Finance, Grameen Ghana and Maata-N-Tudu, uses microfinance, education, and information technology to improve the conditions of shea women. Since enrolling in the program, women have seen significant improvements in income. This case study examines program progress to date and makes recommendations for program improvements using a value chain development framework.

Resource: Academic Case

Topic :

Breaking New Ground: Using the Internet to Scale

Commissioned by KaBOOM! and authored by Katherine Fulton and alumna Heather McLeod Grant of the Monitor Institute, this case study looks at the challenges KaBOOM! faced and lessons the organization learned while pioneering an online strategy to scale its impact. This strategy involves giving away the nonprofit model online for free to empower others to act on KaBoom's behalf.

Resource: Practitioner Case

Topic :

Health Care, Economic Development

Can Oil Filters Improve Health Care?

For millions of people across Africa, motorcycles can be a key to effective health care. A well-maintained fleet of vehicles and motorcycles to connect patients, medical expertise, and medicine is sometimes the most vital link in the health delivery supply chain. A new case written for the Stanford Global Supply Chain Management Forum describes one successful program.

Resource: Academic Case

Topic :

Kiva.org and the Power of Storytelling

This case details the founding story of Kiva, with particular focus on the way that Jessica Jackley and Matt Flannery have stayed true to the original mission by telling authentic stories about entrepreneurs in East Africa, and how those stories have influenced lenders and fellows.

Resource: Academic Case

Topic :

The "Tipping Point" and Green Dot Public Schools

Green Dot is charter management organization that is bringing high-performance to Los Angeles, an area traditionally plagued by dismal graduating case. This case explores Green Dots the advantages and disadvantages of transformative strategy to reach a 'tipping point' in Los Angeles' educational community.

Resource: Academic Case

Research Papers : All

Topics:

Arts, Culture, and Religion, Nonprofit Management

Supporting Equality in Education

How can a certain kind of behavior actually contributes to inequalities? Specifically, do children’s social-class backgrounds affect when and how they seek help in the classroom, thereby teasing out children’s own role in educational stratification? We consider how teachers may use such information to correct these dynamics, and thus contribute to more equal access for all children at school.

Resource: Research Paper

Topics:

Government

Electoral Incentives and Partisan Conflict in Congress: Evidence from Survey Experiments

Does partisan conflict damage citizens’ perceptions of Congress? If so, why has polarization increased in Congress since the 1970s?

Resource: Research Paper

Topics:

Government, Healthcare

The Effect of Tax Preferences on Health Spending

Workers who earn just below the Social Security tax threshold receive a larger tax preference for health insurance than workers who earn just above it.

Resource: Research Paper

Topics:

Using implementation intentions prompts to enhance influenza vaccination rates

Seasonal influenza leads to >200,000 hospitalizations and >8,000 deaths in the United States each year. The influenza vaccine is widely available at low cost and reduces mortality, morbidity, and healthcare costs. Nevertheless, many of those for whom vaccination is indicated fail to comply with CDC recommendations for vaccination. If low compliance is the result of careful calculations by individuals weighing the costs and beneﬁts of vaccination, it may be difﬁcult and expensive for policymakers and organizational leaders to increase vaccination rates. However, if low compliance is the result of forgetfulness or procrastination, low-cost interventions that use psychological tools may be effective at increasing vaccination rates and improving public health.

Resource: Research Paper

Topics:

Automatic detection of omissions in medication lists

[photo - Collaborative Filtering of Medication Lists]

Evidence suggests that the medication lists of patients are often incomplete and could negatively affect patient outcomes. By predicting drugs the patient could be taking, collaborative ﬁltering can be a valuable tool for reconciling medication lists.

Resource: Research Paper

Courses : All

Topic :

Biodesign Innovation: OIT 581/3

The two-quarter Elective Course series provides lectures from a diverse group of faculty that expose students to the practical aspects of technology invention and development. The class features a presentation or discussion from one of the guest speakers or faculty. Students work in small project teams in the Biodesign prototyping lab or bench space, collaborating with the fellows of the program.

Resource: MBA Course

Topic :

The Power of Social Technology: GSBGEN 358

The goal of this seminar is to investigate how social technology (e.g., blogs, websites, podcasts, widgets, community groups, social network feeds) can change attitudes and behaviors in ways that cultivate social change. We study the strategies and tactics used by companies and causes that have successfully catalyzed social persuasion.

Resource: MBA Course

Topic :

Economic Development

Strategic Thinking in Action - In Business and Beyond: STRAMGT 373

This seminar helps participants develop strategically informed action plans that are imaginative, inspiring, and workable in highly dynamic environments. Through informed debate and the writing and presentation of position papers, participants evaluate and hone their views on the seminar's critical themes.

Resource: MBA Course

Topic :

Social Entrepreneurship: STRAMGT 369

This course focuses on the efforts of private citizens to create effective responses to social needs and innovative solutions to social problems. It equips students with frameworks and tools that will help them be more effective as a social entrepreneur.

Resource: MBA Course

Topic :

Strategic Management of Nonprofits: STRAMGT 368

This course surveys strategic, governance, and management issues facing a wide range of nonprofit organizations in an era of venture philanthropy and social entrepreneurship. It introduces students to core managerial issues in the nonprofit sector, such as development/fundraising, investment management, performance management and nonprofit finance.

Resource: MBA Course

Innovators : All

Topic :

Kate Surman, MBA '04

Kate Surman, MBA '04, Administrative Director of Strategic Operations, Stanford Hospital & Clinics, discusses how she has leveraged the Public Management and Social Innovation certificate to take her career into a new direction.

Resource: Alumni

Topic :

Economic Development, Social Entrepreneurship

Farm to Cup Merger Emphasizes Partnership & Economic Empowerment

[photo - Farm to Cup - Root Capital Lending]

A grassroots student effort led by Caroline Mullen, MBA ’12, Catha Mullen, MBA ’13, and Monica Lewis, MBA ’12, now has even more impact through a merger with Pachamama Coffee Cooperative.

Resource: Alumni

Topic :

Water World

Leading a Social Innovation Study Trip lands Robyn Beavers, MBA '10, in a new industry.

Resource: Alumni

Topic :

Economic Development, Healthcare

Jeremy Sokulsky, MBA '04

Jeremy Sokulsky, MBA '04, President, Environmental Incentives, discusses how he's drawing upon the tools and training he received from the GSB to help make a difference.

Resource: Alumni

Topic :

Cross-Sector Effort Helps People See Better

Vision care is something that is practically taken for granted in the United States, but that’s not the case throughout much of the world. Some 300 million around the globe suffer from correctable vision loss, leading, as Ashanthi Mathai, MBA '04, says, “to people accepting their vision impairment and adjusting their lives around it.” The result? A lower quality of life, restricted job options, and even further economic distress.

Resource: Alumni

Topic :

Research: Spring Water Protection Improves Health

Stanford Social Innovation Review: Fall 2011

Living near safe drinking water is not the same as drinking safe water.

Nonprofit Management, Social Entrepreneurship

Resource: Stanford Social Innovation Review Article

Topic :

Research: Cadaver Commerce

Stanford Social Innovation Review: Fall 2011

The moral legitimacy of a new market can come as much from how you sell something as from exactly what you’re selling.

Resource: Stanford Social Innovation Review Article

Topic :

Finding Your Funding Model

Stanford Social Innovation Review: Fall 2011

Many nonprofit leaders seek reliable funding but are not sure how best to pursue it. Four guidelines provide a road map for leaders to identify and develop the right funding model for their organization.

Resource: Stanford Social Innovation Review Article

Topic :

Research: How Leaders Encourage Innovation

Stanford Social Innovation Review: Fall 2011

Transformational leaders capitalize on the creativity that employees have.

Resource: Stanford Social Innovation Review Article

Topic :