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Net Impact is a nonprofit membership organization for students and professionals interested in using business skills in support of various social and environmental causes. It serves both a professional organization and one of the largest student organizations among in the world.Vogel, David. The Market for Virtue: The Potential and Limits of Corporate Social Responsibility Brookings Institution Press, 2004 From its central office in Oakland, the organization supports over 300 autonomous volunteer-run chapters and a membership base of over 100,000, with programs and networking events centered on topics such as corporate social responsibility, social entrepreneurship, nonprofit management, international development, and environmental sustainability. Additionally, various Net Impact Case Competitions are hosted annually throughout its university chapters to encourage teams to analyze and propose more sustainable business practices.
Beginning in 1998, a professional network of SRB alumni began to form. The organization was renamed Net Impact in 1999 in part to accommodate a shift toward inclusion of professional MBA graduates.”Naming the Future” Leading Business, Net Impact, Fall 1999 The first professional chapter was launched in San Francisco in 2001, and in 2008 professionals made up 44% of all dues-paying members, and 23% of chapters.
In 2007, an undergraduate pilot program was initiated, growing to 34 undergraduate chapters by early 2009.
While the bulk of Net Impact’s activity has been focused in the United States, international chapters began as early as 1997 at INSEAD in Fontainebleau, France. The inaugural European conference was held in Geneva, Switzerland in June, 2008 in partnership with HEC Geneva IOMBA, INSEAD and the University of Nottingham.Zaidman, Yasmina “Net Impact Europe: Can Business Make a Positive Difference?” Acumen Fund Blog,
Between 2004 and 2008, under the leadership of Executive Director Liz Maw, the organization increased its paid membership nearly fivefold, in keeping with a growth trend that has been identified among MBAs and society at large toward interest in responsible business practices.“CSR Jobs Rank High for Newly Minted MBAs: Report” GreenBiz
In June 2019, Net Impact hired Peter Lupoff as its CEO.
Past keynote speakers at the conference have included Alicia Garza, Co-founder of Black Lives Matter, Doug McMillon, CEO of Walmart, Sally Jewell, President and CEO of REI; Yvon Chouinard, Founder of Patagonia; Tensie Whelan, Executive Director of the Rainforest Alliance; Chad Holliday, CEO of DuPont; Honorable Al Gore, Chairman of Generation Investment Management and former Vice President of the United States; Tom Chappell, CEO and Founder of Tom's of Maine; Gary Erickson, CEO of Clif Bar, Inc.; Andrew Yang, Candidate for the 2020 Democratic Party Presidential Nomination; and Orin Smith, President and CEO of Starbucks Coffee Company.
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