Social innovation—the opportunity to leverage creativity and innovation to solve complex problems and help people and communities thrive—is often associated with entrepreneurs or singular individuals. Though this is true and is certainly one aspect of the formula that leads to meaningful impact, it isn’t the full story.
The reality is that few individuals create truly innovative social impact alone. Organizations have an incredible role to play in the important work of supporting human flourishing—and as leaders of organizations, we must step into the role before us and get engaged.
When I reflect on organizations who embody what it means to play a significant role in social innovation—and actively serve as a catalyst for social impact—three key pillars come to mind.
The first is a distinct sense of purpose; one that serves as a North Star to transcend vision and galvanize our efforts. This sense of purpose enables creativity across organizations and invites a sense of imagination that leads to true innovation.
The second is a commitment to an organization’s role as a convener. True impact requires the engagement of an entire ecosystem, particularly when we’re considering some of the most complex problems that keep people and communities from flourishing. Organizations have an incredible role to play when we consider the ways in which we can bring together a variety of players who are interested in collaboration, ultimately focused on improving lives for those around us.
Finally, we must be willing to act, resisting the urge to simply discuss how we can improve the countless challenges we face and together begin to move toward action. It can be easy to get lost in conversation, but discussion alone will not create change. It’s action that leads to results.
When organizations step fully into this role and see themselves as key players in the social innovation space, it can lead to true impact and flourishing for our communities.
Entrepreneurial and higher education thought leader Dr. Greg Jones is the president of Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee. Greg is passionate about re-shaping cultures within and across organizations and has coined the term “traditioned innovation” to capture how he re-frames complex challenges to seize significant opportunities.
