Canadian Company Makes Change First and then Makes it Last

Apr 6, 2010 1:10 PM ET

(3BLMedia/theCSRfeed) April 6, 2010 - The Acacia Group is a new company with a bold idea. While they are part of a growing industry focused on helping individuals, companies and communities do well by doing good; their work focuses on the “sweet spot” of the intersection between corporate social responsibility (CSR), leadership development and community development.  CSR refers to the way in which businesses manage their processes to produce an overall positive impact on their stakeholders, their profits, and the environment. British Columbia based  – the Acacia Group – believes that leadership is the key lever for this transformation. They also believe that this just makes good business sense. Leaders who are engaging, who have the ability to handle multiple activities in multiple contexts are more likely to see and respond to opportunity. They are also more likely to attract, retain and develop individuals and teams who will take business beyond its traditional borders.

The company - with the tag line - socially responsible leadership experiences-, gives participants the opportunity to volunteer in developing communities for one to two weeks and then to apply any lessons learned back into their sponsoring organization. This transfer of knowledge, skills and experience is assisted by the presence of a certified leadership coach who works with the individual and the sponsoring company before, during and after the volunteer project is complete.
 
“This is a win on so many levels” says Dave Harrhy one of the three managing partners. “It is a win for the sponsoring company as they get to demonstrate their commitment to social responsibility….it is a win for the individual who participates, as they feel valued by the company and get exposed to new ways of communicating, problem solving and being creative and then gets to embed this new leadership lens into the organization…it is a win for the non-profit group that we work with as they get strong minds and bodies to commit to an identified solution to a community problem…and it is win for the communities in which we participate as they get services that they may otherwise not have access to”.
 
With partnerships in three countries, Kenya, Guatemala and Mexico – the company already offers a variety of volunteer experiences ranging from assisting local entrepreneurs develop products, to literacy programs, tree-planting, school construction and community food programs. “We have opportunities for people to be placed in unfamiliar territory and to come back stronger for it…a stronger leader, a stronger person” says Penny Lane who is responsible for the community development process. The third partner, Christine Bonney is a certified leadership coach and goes on to point out  “We also have the options of working with other social development programs and even travel companies that offer international volunteer opportunities for individuals – we can customize trips and our group sizes are capped at twelve people so we can don’t overwhelm our destinations and this is the optimal number for two coaches to work with”. 
 
“All of the good work comes together “says Harrhy –“this is transformative experience for the individual, a development experience for the community and it allow the sponsoring company to shift from conceptual theory on CSR to real change…essentially embedding CSR as part of the corporate DNA by growing leaders who understand the social and corporate benefits that come from doing good work”.
 
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