Be Fearless

Facing the Fear of Thinking Big

Posted on by Case Foundation

Written by Gisli Olafsson on behalf of the Case Foundation: 

NetHope collaborates with 35 leading international humanitarian organizations to better serve the developing world through innovative technology and communications. Their focus is on five practice areas: Connectivity, Field Capacity Building, Emergency Response, Shared Services, and Innovation for Development. NetHope’s Emergency Response Director Gisli Olafsson writes about making big bets and reaching beyond your bubble in the face of fear. He was recently named a finalist for the Microsoft Alumni Foundation’s Integral Fellow Award for his leadership in the field of emergency response and especially telecommunications and information management. Olafsson has worked in the sector for more than 20 years.

“Be the change you want to see in the world.” – Gandhi

I remember how I felt the first time I read the quote above: it profoundly touched me and gave me the additional courage to keep advocating for the change of things I feel are inefficient or simply wrong. It is never easy to be the one that raises questions about the status quo. It is certainly much easier to take no action and use the excuse that “this has the way it’s always been done, so why change it.”

Many people talk about money and technology as keys to being able to drive development in emerging markets. But interestingly enough, money and technology usually aren’t the biggest hurdles when trying to address huge issues. It turns out that the more technologically difficult a problem is, the more smart people can be mobilized to find a solution. I have also found that the bigger the problem, the more likely donors will be interested; they understand the big impact solving a big issue can have and they are tired of endlessly funding small steps that often never lead anywhere.

The most difficult hurdles you face are usually political, organizational or personal in nature. Achieving a consensus, building partnerships, establishing a common vision and getting people to think outside of their own little box requires the biggest effort. Every time you introduce a new vision, new idea or a new way of addressing things, people and organizations are afraid that it will make their current role irrelevant, leading them to lose funding or jobs: helping others overcome that fear is the difficult task of change leaders.

I have had the great opportunity over the last year to bring together a broad partnership of organizations and individuals who believe in the power of open data in humanitarian response under a program we at NetHope chose to call the Open Humanitarian Initiative.

Bringing together all of these different organizations around the common vision of improved humanitarian response has not been easy, but by investing time in understanding our partners fears, concerns and needs, we are getting close to bringing about big impact to our field. Later this fall we will be formally launching this initiative then it will be one of the broadest and most ambitious public-private partnerships ever in the humanitarian sector. By facing our fears and helping others do the same we have been able to bring together enough critical mass to cause humanitarian response to move from the industrial age to the information age.

Bringing these different organizations together and helping them face their fear of collaborating has been a learning experience for me. It has helped me understand that my own fear of thinking big is one that is worth facing, because the bigger your vision, the more impact you can have on the world we live in.

Resolving to be more fearless and do more good in 2013

Posted on by Case Foundation

Looking back on our resolutions for 2012, we’re pleased to see that we can check most of the items off the list in some way or another. We did more #GoodSpotting throughout the year, traveled to new places, voted in the presidential election, and ran half marathons. While our meetings may not always be efficient (we like to have some fun, too!), and no one learned to knit, we are giving each other some high fives for being fearless and challenging ourselves to new opportunities and adventures.

This year is no different – we believe it’s possible to be even more fearless and to do even more good in 2013, and we hope that you’ll join us and add some of your own resolutions, goals, and big ideas for next year, in the comments, @casefoundation on Twitter, or on our Facebook page. Here’s what’s on tap for us:

  • Take the pledge to Be Fearless (again!).
  • Live a more healthy life: less caffeine, more sleep and exercise, and healthful dinners.
  • Get more involved in our local community, through volunteering or experimenting with a new hobby.
  • Become an advocate for the causes and charities we are most passionate about and raise awareness for their issues.
  • Run and complete a 10-mile race…and someone else wants to run their first half marathon.
  • Focus on my family more, send them letters, call and show them how much I appreciate and love them.
  • Research and support new nonprofits doing fearless work.
  • Start biking to work.
  • Be grateful for all that is around us.
  • Learn to cook more meals from scratch.
  • Dedicate time each week to artistic endeavors like drawing, painting, or sewing.
  • Set more boundaries – personally and professionally, and be accountable to them.
  • Tell our loved ones how much they mean to us – not later, but now.
  • Challenge more team members to the No-Counter-Food Challenge.
  • Do one big fearless thing next year, and find little ways to be fearless each day.

So what would you add to this list for yourself? How will you pledge to be more fearless in 2013?

Portland Junior Scientists Voted Finding Fearless Fan Favorite

Posted on by Case Foundation

Congratulations to Meghana Rao and the Portland Junior Scientists team! More than 10,000 votes were cast during the Finding Fearless Fan Favorite Voting and after carefully reviewing all of the ballots submitted we are pleased to officially report that the public overwhelmingly selected Portland Junior Scientists to win both Fan Favorite awards. Led by Meghana Rao, Portland Junior Scientists was voted the winner of an additional $10,000 bonus grant AND the REI adventure experience at Bryce Canyon National Park!

We launched Finding Fearless in September to recognize, reward, and inspire fearless changemakers. We received nearly 1,200 nominations with stories of fearless efforts happening around the country. Our Fearless Academy of nearly 100 judges reviewed the nominations and we selected the Top 20 winners. These winners all receive grants from the Case Foundation and the Goldhirsh Foundation ranging between $1,500 and $10,000, $25,000 in Microsoft software donations, an REI gift card, and a Microsoft Prize Pack, altogether totaling nearly $670,000. Additionally, all 20 winners had a chance to win more money and prizes in Fan Favorite Voting and impressively mobilized their communities. We were excited to watch the overwhelming interest in these fearless people and projects. And while Meghana managed to come out on top, all 20 projects have gained new supporters and advocates that will champion their work in the months and years ahead.

More about our Fan Favorite Winner

When Meghana Rao was 16, school funding cuts and a deep passion for science motivated Meghana to create Portland Junior Scientists. Portland Junior Scientists is a student-run volunteer organization connecting high school students with underprivileged and at-risk kids to explore science, technology, engineering, and mathematics with hands-on experimentation and discussion. Meghana’s main goal is to inspire students in underfunded schools lacking a deep science and math curriculum to pursue careers in science. We are excited to work with Portland Junior Scientists to continue to advocate for the importance of science education!

Meghana’s “get out the vote” efforts landed Portland Junior Scientists in first place for both the $10,000 bonus grant from the Case Foundation and the REI Adventure Trip. Meghana and three friends will receive a trip of a lifetime through REI Adventures valued at $5,000. They will get to visit Bryce Canyon National Park through an exclusive camping experience that celebrates having fun outdoors REI-style with the best gear, great food, and incredible guides. REI Adventure’s Signature Camping trip to Bryce Canyon is certain to provide an amazing experience and a lifetime of memories.

We are truly inspired by Meghana and all of our Finding Fearless winners! From youth programs to civic engagement and health, Finding Fearless changemakers are championing new ideas across the country. Check out our infographic with more details on our Finding Fearless participants and stay tuned in the next few months as we continue to lift up all of our winners. We will be following their progress, sharing their stories, and reporting back on lessons from the Finding Fearless program itself. In the meantime, meet the rest of the winners, read their stories, get inspired, and keep supporting their work at FindingFearless.org.

The Civil Rights Issue of Our Time: a City Year Corps Member’s Perspective

Posted on by Case Foundation

This post was written by Kathryn Hanna on behalf of the Case Foundation:

I often find it challenging to explain to friends and family the exact nature of my work, and why it’s important. Sure, I can tell people that “every 26 seconds a student gives up on school in America.” I can throw out statistics like, “more than 50 percent of the nation’s high school dropouts come from just 12 percent of the nation’s schools.” But until you actually set foot in these high-need schools, the sheer magnitude of the obstacles our students are facing is difficult to fathom. Today, corps members serving with City Year, an education-focused nonprofit that seeks to keep students in school and on track to graduate, are facing the reality of the dropout crisis every day as they embark on their year of service as tutors, mentors, and role models in some of the highest-need inner-city schools across the country.

The crisis became real for me about a month into my corps year, in the fall of 2011. I was working with one of our sixth graders, Grace, on a math worksheet during Power Hour, a block of time during afterschool designated for homework help. The worksheet required Grace to multiply and divide fractions, a skill the class had been practicing for a couple of weeks. When I saw that Grace was struggling to multiply the fractions in her head, I attempted to break the problem down for her. And when she continued to struggle, I broke the problem down even further, taking her through step by step until I couldn’t break it down any more. After we had been working on the same problem for nearly fifteen minutes, a sad realization hit me: the reason Grace was struggling so much went beyond the fact that she didn’t understand fractions. The problem was, Grace couldn’t multiply to begin with. In fact, she could barely add. When I realized this, I put away the worksheet, pulled out a fresh sheet of paper, and began to teach Grace how to do multiplication.

That night, I went home feeling angry, frustrated, and defeated. It isn’t fair that students like Grace should face such difficulties in completing a simple worksheet; it isn’t right that her classmates, and others like them, are so far behind that they are still reading at a second grade level by the time they reach middle school; and it isn’t okay that we as a nation are allowing these injustices to continue. However, I also came to a realization. The dropout crisis has been referred to as “the civil rights issue of our time,” and when such large-scale injustices are taking place, it is that initial spark of anger, that feeling that something isn’t right, isn’t fair, isn’t okay, that lights the fire in a society which leads to drastic change.

There is a saying at City Year that goes, “It’s not my fault-but it is.” It’s easy to come into these schools, see the problem, and immediately look for someone to blame, be it teachers, parents, principals, or even the students themselves. But the fact is, it doesn’t matter. As I used to tell my students last year, you can’t change the people around you, and you can’t change the situations you’re faced with; the only thing you can control is how you react. So we can choose to blame others, to let ourselves become overwhelmed and disheartened, to let fear and apathy stand in our way. Or, we can choose to recognize the urgency of the situation, and realize that drastic, immediate action is needed, and it’s up to us to stand up and fight for our students. Unfortunately, cases like Grace’s are not uncommon in the schools we serve, but there is a way out.

As I embark on a second year of service, this time in an elementary school, I will remember Grace. I will remember her not for that day in Power Hour, though, or for the many Power Hours that followed during which we labored through worksheet after worksheet. Rather, I will remember that Grace never gave up, and I never gave up on Grace; and by the end of the year, her math grades reflected that: she began to show improvement. Our challenges are huge, and no, one person alone cannot reverse the damage that’s been done to our education system after years of neglect. But together, we can be fearless, and we can change the world.

Kathryn Hannah is a City Year Washington, DC corps member from Asheville, NC. She currently serves on the C.W. Harris Elementary School Team sponsored by Serve DC. This is the third in a series of blogs we’ll feature from City Year and AmeriCorps alumni about their journeys to Be Fearless through service. Read the first and second posts.

National Failures Day: Be Fearless and Make Failure Matter

Posted on by Case Foundation

It seems like there is a holiday for everything these days, and sure enough, we discovered a new one today: it’s National Failures Day. What is there to celebrate? Plenty!

In our recent report “To Be Fearless” we outlined five key characteristics of a fearless approach to creating lasting social change. Before our landscape assessment and focus groups, we knew the concept which Lucy Bernholz described as “Failing Forward” had to be at the top of the list. Entrepreneurs, athletes and even politicians all know that recognizing, analyzing and proudly learning from failure is critical to success. While it has taken quite some time, we’re delighted to see some signs that the nonprofit sector, and those of us that invest in nonprofits, are becoming more comfortable with this concept. At this year’s Public Allies national leadership institute, Darell Hammond, the dynamic founder of kaBOOM, told the audience that kaBOOM staff are encouraged to make and share mistakes quickly so they can start making new mistakes that will lead to big wins.

In our new report, “To Be Fearless,” and below, we highlight a few examples of people and organizations whom have made failure matter. Take a look and then take the pledge to Be Fearless and make failure matter today!

  • Read the Make Failure Matter section of our To Be Fearless, starting with this excerpt: “With innovation and big bets comes the risk of failure. Every great innovator has experienced moments of failure, but the truly great among them wear those failures as badges of honor. When the philanthropy and social sectors are fearful, they increase the danger of depriving themselves and others of needed lessons. As innovators in the social good space, sometimes it’s easier to back away when it looks as if things aren’t going as planned. But it’s important to have faith and fail forward–to stay the course and to pivot when it’s needed. It’s the way you respond to failure, and not the failure itself, that matters.” Read more about making failure matter in the full report.
  • Philanthropy expert Lucy Bernholz has been a leader in encouraging our sector to fail forward.
  • Senator Mark Warner shares his moments of failure that led to his successes at our Be Fearless launch event (video).
  • Ben Duda, Executive Director of AmeriCorps Alumns, shares his journey as a social changemaker and how he’s made failure matter.
  • The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation has devoted several chapters to their “To Improve Health and Health Care” anthology to learning from failure.
  • In 2010, I blogged about the painful acknowledgement of coming up short as it related to some of our clean drinking water investments in Africa.

Do you have moments in your journey to be fearless where you built big success on top of a big failure? How have you made failure matter? Share with us on our Facebook page or @CaseFoundation on Twitter using #BeFearless..

Tim Harris: a Fearless, Hugging Special Olympics Athlete

Posted on by Case Foundation

In June, we released what we believe are five elements to a fearless approach in solving some of the world’s most pressing issues, in our new website and report, “To Be Fearless.” We are asking people to take the pledge to Be Fearless in one (or more!) of the following ways: 1) Make big bets and make history; 2) Experiment early and often; 3) Make failure matter; 4) Reach beyond your bubble; and 5) Let urgency conquer fear.

To celebrate the Olympics, we’ll be featuring a new blog series in partnership with the Special Olympics for the next few weeks, highlighting the fearless journeys of athletes, volunteers, and leadership from the organization. In part two, we are featuring Tim Harris—an athlete, Global Messenger (one of 12 international athlete spokespeople for the organization), and restaurant owner who has reached beyond his bubble and made fearless big bets.

Tim’s Place, located in located in Albuquerque, New Mexico, provides “the friendliest service in the world” and serves “breakfast, lunch and hugs.” Beyond the hugs and friendly service, this family restaurant is unique because of the fearless leader at the helm.

His name is Tim Harris. The 26-year-old is a Special Olympics New Mexico athlete and Global Messenger whose life has been defined by exceeding expectations.

In a speech to a group from Special Olympics that visited his restaurant, Tim said, “From the minute I was born, I always wanted to be a part of the world around me.” He joined Special Olympics in his youth and would go on to participate in several sports, including poly hockey, basketball, track and field, and others. And as he says, “I’ve earned more medals than Michael Phelps.” In 2008, Tim graduated from Eastern New Mexico University with certificates in Food Service and Office Skills. He worked at a variety of local restaurants including CiCi’s Pizza, Golden Corral, IHOP, and Peppers Bar and Grill.

Tim had always dreamed of owning his own restaurant. In October 2010, adhering to Walt Disney’s motto “If you can dream it, you can do it,” he opened Tim’s Place. Tim fearlessly lives out his personal mantra, which can be found on the wall of his office, “I am more like you than different.”

Not only did Tim reach beyond his bubble and surpass what most thought possible: he made a big bet and made history as he is the only person with Down Syndrome to own a restaurant. He epitomizes how to conquer fear and defy the odds and is truly an inspiration to all who encounter him.

Hugs are Tim’s measure of success. He doesn’t charge extra for the hugs and says “most customers order at least one, sometimes two” — he has a counter on the wall to track his hugs which is currently tracking more than 20,000 hugs. Not only is Tim teaching so many people how to Be Fearless, but he is actively bringing joy into the world every day. Because who couldn’t use a free hug?

See more of Tim’s story, in this CBS News video:

Learn more about the Special Olympics, and read part one in our series.

Join us on a Journey to Be Fearless

Posted on by Case Foundation

If you’ve been following the Case Foundation in any of our communication outlets over the past few months-Facebook, Twitter, blog, meetings, etc.-you will know that we’ve been pretty excited about two words: Be Fearless.

Well, today we go from excited to ecstatic because today’s the day we officially kick off our journey to Be Fearless, and invite you to come along for the ride! There are several ways you can participate…here’s how:
CaseFoundation.org/BeFearless

To spark a dialogue on what it means to Be Fearless in the social sector, we are unveiling a new report and interactive website: To Be Fearless. The report, written by leading philanthropy consultants Cynthia Gibson and Brad Rourke, is based on interviews with leading changemakers and an exhaustive landscape analysis of some of the most impactful or promising social movements of our time. The report outlines what we see as the five key elements to any fearless approach to creating change, with the goal of sparking discussion, challenging assumptions and inspiring action. Check out CaseFoundation.org/BeFearless to read highlights of the report, download the full report, share your favorite points and elements with your friends and colleagues, and most importantly, to take the Be Fearless pledge-and just by doing so you could win an iPad preloaded with To Be Fearless or several other fun items specially selected for the Fearless changemaker on the move. 🙂

Jean Case Blog in SSIR

Earlier this year, our CEO Jean Case reflected on 15 years of the Foundation’s work in addressing social challenges, and observed that we and our partners were at our best when we took risks, acted boldly and learned from failures. In other words, we were at our best when we were Fearless. Today, Jean publishes a blog post on Stanford Social Innovation Review previewing the five key elements to Be Fearless, while calling on foundations and other social innovation leaders to join the conversation.

Be Fearless campaign launch LIVE!

This afternoon, we’re gathering with some fearless leaders we admire, to formally release the To Be Fearless paper and site, and to learn from examples of fearlessness in the social good sector, and how moving forward, we can all collaborate in new and innovative ways to make the world a better place. We hope you’ll join us online for the livestreamed event (it starts at 2:00pm ET), which will feature an interview with Jean and Steve Case by CEO of the Aspen Institute and Steve Jobs biographer Walter Isaacson, and a panel discussion with Senator Mark Warner, Barbara Bush, and Tom Tierney. Several lucky viewers will win an autographed copy of Steve Jobs, so tune in and it could be you. You can watch the event below, and we invite you to Be Fearless and join the conversation here on this blog, on Twitter using #BeFearless, or on our Facebook page.

Update: missed the event online? Watch the recording below!

Video streaming by Ustream

Fearless Focus: Mario Morino

Posted on by Case Foundation

In our journey to Be Fearless and champion a fearless approach to tackling social challenges, the Case Foundation team will spotlight leading changemakers across sectors that have embraced fearlessness. Our spotlights will provide personal accounts of why these changemakers adopted a fearless approach, how they overcame hurdles, and how taking risks, being bold, and failing forward led to quicker results and deeper impact.

This week, we are featuring Mario Morino, Chairman of Venture Philanthropy Partners (VPP) and the Morino Institute, and author of Leap of Reason: Managing to Outcomes in an Era of Scarcity. Jean and Steve Case along with the Case Foundation are founding investors and long-time supporters of VPP, a philanthropic investment organization that helps great leaders build strong, high-performing nonprofit institutions in the DC region.Since co-founding VPP in 2000, Mario has been a leader in applying venture and growth principles to the nonprofit sector to build stronger, high-impact organizations. Previous to VPP, Mario was a software entrepreneur and civic business leader in the DC region, and more recently in Northeast Ohio.

What do you think it means to Be Fearless in approaching social challenges?

A fearless leader has the courage to periodically look in the mirror to face that difficult question, “Is our hard work truly adding up to great results for those we serve?” And if the answer is “no,” a fearless leader acknowledges shortcomings, reaches out for help from others, seeks relevant information on how to improve, and then takes bold (even painful) steps to get on a more impactful course. In my work with Venture Philanthropy Partners (VPP), with other nonprofit organizations, and in my business career, I’ve made more than my share of mistakes, sought help, and then course-corrected. But let me offer a better example of fearless introspection which I learned about this past year. In the early 1990s, Youth Villages (YV) CEO Pat Lawler kept hearing through the grapevine about young people who seemed to be on a good path after discharge from YV’s residential treatment facilities and yet had ended up in prison or in other forms of crisis. This prompted Pat to start collecting more information to find out what was really happening to those kids. The results were disappointing at best. Instead of hiding the bad news from stakeholders, Pat and his team openly acknowledged that they were falling short of their aspirations and then spent several tough years reengineering the entire program model. Today, 82 percent percent of the kids in YV programs across the country are rising above their challenges. They are finishing school, earning a living, and contributing to their communities. That’s literally twice the rate achieved by comparable programs. And Pat’s program costs one-third as much as competitor programs.

Tell us about a time when you and your organization were Fearless.

In all candor, I don’t see myself as fearless, as I’ve had the luxury of time and resources to be able to take thoughtful, measured risks (at least most of the time). For instance, I never viewed co-founding VPP as being fearless, nor did I see the choices we made in our philanthropic investments as fearless, since they were grounded by deep analysis. Having said this, in my business and philanthropic life I have consistently done what some would regard as bold or even on the edge: I have sought to recruit leaders to my boards, advisory groups, and management teams who know more than I do and from whom I can learn. For example, recruiting Carol Thompson Cole to serve as VPP’s CEO would feel pretty risky to some organizational founders. Carol is an exemplary leader who commands deep respect and could steal a founder’s thunder. But to me, being able to recruit outstanding talent-talent that could (and should) take me out of a central decision-making role with the organization-is essential. I believe leaders of organizations have to be fearless in recruiting and/or developing the strongest talent they can for the boards and organization-even when that talent is better than they are.

What did you learn & what advice would you give other organizations facing a similar decision point?

I think the hardest thing to do is to question your own performance and that of your organization. It sounds trite, but being honest with yourself is critical. It’s easy to say you want to recruit strong talent to your board and organization until you are confronted with the fact that these same strong people will have strong views and opinions, modes of operation, etc., that are different from yours. That’s when the rubber meets the road. As long as you are philosophically and culturally aligned, are you ready to step back and give others the latitude to speak out, to differ, and to lead? Much easier said than done. There’s a follow-on, which is to have to courage to admit when a people decision you made was wrong and then act to rectify it. As one of my bosses and advisors told me, if you hire someone and they leave or they don’t work out in the first year, it is squarely your mistake. You either didn’t do the right due diligence up front, or you inadvertently set the person up to fail.

What inspired your organization to Be Fearless?

I don’t mean to dodge your question, but as I said earlier I don’t see myself as fearless. Writing columns, giving speeches, and supporting others doesn’t exactly take nerves of steel. But running a community health center, intervening with gang members, negotiating with a drug dealer to stay away from your school-now that takes a fearless leader! Therefore, I feel much more comfortable speaking about nonprofit leaders who, for very compelling reasons, are truly fearless in their work-and they have to be to succeed. What always inspires great nonprofit leaders to be fearless is the passionate, unyielding desire to do the most they can for those they serve. Great leaders can’t sleep at night when they don’t know whether they’re on course to achieve the results they seek. They’re obsessed with finding ways to do better for those they serve. And as a result, they are willing take big risks to get there.

Learn more about Mario Morino here. Read more about our Be Fearless campaign. Know someone that we should spotlight for Fearless Focus? Let us know here in the comments or tell us on twitter @casefoundation using #befearless

Fearless Focus: Diane Melley

Posted on by Case Foundation

This post was written by Diane Melley on behalf of the Case Foundation:

In our journey to Be Fearless and champion a fearless approach to tackling social challenges, the Case Foundation team will spotlight leading changemakers across sectors that have embraced fearlessness. Our spotlights will provide personal accounts of why these changemakers adopted a fearless approach, how they overcame hurdles, and how taking risks, being bold, and failing forward led to quicker results and deeper impact.

This week, Diane Melley, Director of Corporate Citizenship and Corporate Affairs at IBM, is our guest blogger for Fearless Focus. IBM has been a fearless company since its founding 100 years ago – in society and in the ways it has innovated. From providing equal pay for women in 1935, and then-President Thomas Watson taking a bold stand against segregation in the American South in 1956, to being one of the first American companies to include sexual orientation as part of its nondiscrimination policies in 1984, IBM has consistently set the bar for responsible business practices. IBM has also led in product and service innovation. It holds more patents than any other American company, and many of its inventions and ideas have changed the world: electronic tabulating machines, bar codes, e-business and cloud computing, and of course Watson, the computer that won at Jeopardy. IBM is again leading by example through its pro bono programs, which have provided more than $250 million worth of skills-based services from its employees to nonprofits all over the world.

First, I want to congratulate the Case Foundation on 15 years of innovation and bold action. The organization has provided extraordinary leadership while tackling some of the thorniest issues in the US and around the globe. Whether experimenting with new models and partnerships to create sustainable solutions, or leveraging technology to empower social entrepreneurs, Case has provided a true example of acting fearlessly.

To me, being fearless in approaching social challenges means being willing to step out of the safety of the crowd and go into uncharted territory. Attempting new approaches often means being willing to stand alone, at least initially. And while we at IBM are not afraid of being outside of the pack, our accomplishments – certainly those on the Corporate Citizenship front – are largely in part thanks to the partnership of both the public and private sector. Many of our programs, such as Supplier Connection and P-TECH, would not be possible without the support of our outstanding partners.

Corporate Citizenship & Corporate Affairs at IBM has acted fearlessly over the past several decades, being willing to completely transform itself as an organization.  Historically, the IBM Foundation looked to donate cash to local causes. During the past 10 years, under the aggressive leadership of our Vice President Stan Litow, we have undertaken a substantial shift, broadening our portfolio to align more closely with the strategy of IBM. For example, when our Smarter Cities strategy was announced, we fused the idea of IBM’s business strategy to our citizenship strategy. We looked at how we could assist cities and municipalities from a social perspective. While we will always be interested in education and workforce development, especially as it pertains to STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) curriculum, we are now much more willing to look across IBM for opportunities where we can leverage the expertise of our parent organization and our best asset – IBMers – in service to the communities where we live.

During our transformational journey, we learned many lessons: the importance of being strategic, thinking and planning for the long term, and engaging strong partners. To the first point, it is not enough to be reactionary – the best improvements are those that are thoughtful and deliberate. Second, whatever is created should not just be for the moment, but should be architected in a sustainable manner. Finally, in the social sector, partners are essential – so many of the issues we are trying to resolve are complex and multi-stakeholder – therefore we need to engage cross-sector in order to create and affect true change.

At IBM, we take risks because it is part of our heritage. Our founders and our culture encourage being visionary and at the forefront of what is possible, whether it was hiring our first black employee in 1899, a mere 34 years after the end of the Civil War, hiring our first female employee 20 years before women won the right to vote in the US, or in building Watson, the breakthough natural language Deep Q&A system in 2011. Our inspiration comes from our roots, and our hope is that each IBMer is inspired to act fearlessly and to take risks every day.

Learn more about IBM’s corporate responsibility programs here. Read more about our Be Fearless campaign. Know someone that we should spotlight for Fearless Focus? Let us know here in the comments or tell us on twitter @casefoundation using #befearless.

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