Aligning Profit and Purpose

Catalog description

Have you ever wondered if it was possible to have a job where you did well financially while you were serving your community? This course will allow you to engage with this question personally and professionally. We are living at a moment in time when nearly every business is being asked to not just make money but also to address the great social ills of our time from inequality to climate change to labor rights. This new movement in business involves many different aspects including innovative ways of producing and distributing products and services (ex. Patagonia), new legal structures (ex. Ben and Jerry’s ice cream), socially oriented entrepreneurs (ex. WarbyParker), and impact-focused investors (ex. BlackRock). We will discuss the evolution of this movement and the technical aspects of what works and what doesn't. Finally, we will learn how to build a career in this industry. At the completion of this course, students will have asked themselves tough questions about their own careers, discussed the complexity and opportunity of this effort, learned the tools and methodologies of the industry, and had the opportunity to hear from key leaders in the field.