Cause Talk Radio: The Cause Marketing Podcast

When the Covid-19 pandemic struck, H&R Block was one of the first companies that sprung into action, sharing valuable resources with small business and individuals about navigating the federal government CARES Act as well as providing low- and no-cost tax services to a variety of individuals. In this episode of Cause Talk Radio, Megan speaks to Vinoo Vijay, CMO of H&R Block, about their Covid-19 response as well as their overall purpose focus called ‘Make Every Block Better’ which focuses on increasing human connection, combatting loneliness and supporting entrepreneurs.Links & Notes H&R Block Coronavirus Tax Resource Center H&R Block Make Every Block Better Release 00:00 - Welcome to Cause Talk Radio 00:40 - H&R Block Responds to COVID-19 • Introducing Vinoo Vijay 05:42 - Helping vulnerable communities 13:50 - Sponsor: Accelerist 15:16 - Alignment with Social Impact Work: The Lonliness Epidemic

When COVID-19 struck and all fitness centers had to close their doors, Planet Fitness quickly pivoted and started offering free work-INs to everyone on their Facebook page.In this episode of Cause Talk Radio, Megan talks to McCall Gosselin, Senior Vice President of Communications & Corporate Social Responsibility for Planet Fitness about how they're leveraging these work-ins to feed healthcare workers in a new social responsibility initiative.You'll learn about how (and why) Pizza Mondays have become an important foundation of the company's giving-back strategy during this uncertain time and what the future holds for Planet Fitness and their "judgement free zone".Links & Notes Planet Fitness WorkIns Forbes Post on Pizza vs. Pandemic 00:00 - Welcome to Cause Talk Radio 00:37 - Introducing McCall Gosselin • Planet Fitness 03:47 - Pizza Monday 05:09 - The COVID-19 Social Impact Response 07:41 - Sponsor • Accelerist 09:05 - The COVID Timeline Response 11:08 - Biggest lessons 14:40 - Advice for those look

When the World Health Organization needed to share key messages to contain the spread of COVID-19, it turned to the gaming industry for assistance.Originally started with 18 game industry leaders, the #PlayApartTogether initiative now includes nearly 60 gaming companies that encourages their vast network of users to follow the WHO’s health guidelines—including physical distancing, hand hygiene, respiratory etiquette and other powerful preventive actions people can take to fight COVID-19.In this episode of CTRadio, Megan chats with Dan Goldenberg a VP at Activision Blizard and Jeff Burrell, Head of Social Impact for Riot Games about their company’s activations to help gamers #PlayApartTogether.Mentioned Links Dan Goldenberg on Twitter Call of Duty Endowment Activision/Blizzard Riot Games Social Impact League of Legends Subreddit 00:00 - Welcome to Cause Talk Radio 00:53 - Play Apart Together 01:44 - Introducing Jeff Burrell and Dan Goldenberg 05:39 - Activations across games 11:18 - A history of cause 15:02 -

In this episode of Cause Talk Radio, Megan chats with Engage for Good President David Hessekiel.In addition to being a COVID-19 survivor himself, David….like all of us….has had to make a few changes in the way he works.Megan and David discuss switching an in-person event to a virtual one, the most impactful corporate social impact campaigns right now and what nonprofits are saying about their partnerships amidst the crisis as well as what the future of corporate social impact looks like once the dust has settled. Links & Notes Engage for Good’s Virtual Event Wassup Bud Commercial Remake Longmire on Netflxi 00:47 - Marker 1 03:38 - Going Virtual 12:43 - Sponsor: AudibleTrial.com/CauseTalkRadio 13:38 - David's Favorite Campaigns 21:20 - The Non-Profit Conversations 27:16 - Keeping spirits high

When all live sporting and entertainment events were canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Anheuser-Busch made the decision to redirect sponsorship dollars to nonprofit partners including the American Red Cross.One of the greatest needs in the country right now is blood donations, which have fallen off sharply in recent weeks due to stay-at-home orders and the difficulty of social distancing while donating blood.In this episode of Cause Talk Radio, Megan speaks with Adam Warrington, Vice President of Corporate Social Responsibility for Anheuser-Busch who shares the story of how the company leveraged its available assets to help mitigate the blood donation crisis in partnership with the American Red Cross and what else they're doing both corporately and at the brand level to support their employees and communities around the globe.Links & Notes Anheuser-Busch COVID-19 Response Page Budweiser ‘One Team’ Video 00:00 - Welcome to Cause Talk Radio 00:46 - Introducing Adam Warrington 01:58 - A/B Partners with

The COVID-19 pandemic has closed schools and sent 55 million children home, leaving a huge education gap as well as creating hunger issues for a significant number of them.In response, celebrities Jennifer Garner and Amy Adams decided on a Friday evening they wanted to do something to support children out of school, Save the Children sprung into action and partnered with No Kid Hungry to create a campaign called "SaveWithStories" which now features 150 celebrities reading books to children online.Perry Yeatman is Save the Children's Head of Corporate Partnerships and Megan’s guest in this episode of Cause Talk Radio.Perry and Megan talk about this incredible campaign, as well as what's happening with Save's corporate partnerships and how the organization has ramped up to respond to COVID-19 both in the US and abroad.Links & Notes #SaveWithStories SC Johnson and Save The Children New Partner Release Save the Children’s LinkedIn Page 00:00 - Welcome to Cause Talk Radio 00:56 - Introducing Perry Yeatman 02:

Rosabeth Moss Kanter holds the Ernest L. Arbuckle Professorship at Harvard Business School, specializing in strategy, innovation, and leadership for change and is Megan’s guest in this episode of Cause Talk Radio. Professor Kanter co-founded the Harvard University-wide Advanced Leadership Initiative, guiding its planning from 2005 to its launch in 2008 and serving as Founding Chair and Director from 2008-2018.Author or co-author of 20 books, her latest book is Think Outside the Building: How Advanced Leaders Can Change the World One Smart Innovation at a Time which is the subject of the conversation in this episode.Megan and Professor Kanter discuss how individuals can break through the status quo of established organizations to create bold and innovative systems change that make a meaningful impact in the world, how to influence without authority and where people most frequently get stuck in their efforts to make meaningful change.This episode is sponsored by Audible. Get your free audiobook and start your 3

In this episode, Megan talks to regular guest Joe Waters (SelfishGiving.com) about all things related to the COVID-19 pandemic: how Joe is counseling nonprofit organizations to up their game when it comes to creating a digital following, helpful resources they’ve seen in the social impact space and last but definitely not least the things that are keeping them both sane during this challenging time. 00:00 - Welcome to Cause Talk Radio 01:18 - Welcome Joe Waters 03:46 - Joe's Non-profit Counsel 10:56 - Support the show • AudibleTrial.com/CauseTalkRadio 11:56 - Things to make you smile

Habitat for Humanity International is Engage for Good’s Golden Halo Award Winner for Nonprofits this year, honored for their excellent work with corporate partners, particularly through their ‘Home Is the Key” signature cause initiative started 4 years ago.In this episode of Cause Talk Radio, Megan interviews Habitat’s CEO Jonathan Reckford first about how they’re responding to and impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and then about their corporate partner journey, how Habitat measures meaningful outcomes and the evolution in corporate partners Jonathan has personally witnessed from CSR 1.0 to ESG.Links & Notes Habitat for Humanity International Website Habitat for Humanity on Twitter 00:00 - This is Cause Talk Radio 01:43 - Introducing Jonathan Rexford, CEO Habitat for Humanity 02:40 - Relief versus Recovery 06:17 - Corporate Partners 08:24 - The Golden Halo Award — Evolution of Corporate Partnerships 14:32 - Support the Show — Free Audiobook with Audible! 15:32 - Evolution of Partnership Relationships 18

The COVID-19 Global Pandemic has taken us all by surprise and left many of us feeling helpless and uncertain. Those of us with events have to make particularly hard decisions. In this episode of Cause Talk Radio, Megan chats with Chris Baylis of The Sponsorship Collective who has some tips for you to consider when it comes to event sponsorship and a decision-making framework as you contemplate whether to cancel, postpone or continue with your events.Links & Notes Chris Baylis Blog Post And Video on COVID-19 Events Chris Baylis on LinkedIn Chris Baylis on Twitter 00:00 - Welcome to Cause Talk Radio 00:48 - Introducing Chris Baylis 04:40 - Three Options for Events 11:40 - Support CTR! Get a free Audiobook! 12:32 - Virtual Options

Did you know that most toothpaste tubes are made from plastic and aluminum, making them impossible to recycle? It took five years of development but Colgate thinks it's finally come up with a solution in the form of its Smile for Good toothpaste tube made from high density polyethylene (HDPE) -the same plastic used for making milk jugs.In this episode of Cause Talk Radio, Megan talks to Ann Tracy, VP of Safety, Sustainability and Supply Chain Strategy at Colgate about their new recyclable tube, how Colgate is open to sharing their new technology with the industry and how consumer behavior is a big part of this equation. Megan and Ann also discuss some of Colgate's other sustainability initiatives including their efforts around water conservation.Links & Notes Colgate’s Sustainability Page Colgate on LinkedIn 00:00 - This is Cause Talk Radio 00:55 - The Colgate Smile for Good Tube 04:19 - The Tube Problem 09:06 - Sponsor: Audible • Get a free audiobook! 09:54 - Consumer Behavior and Education 12:48 - Shar

Millions of kids in the United States do not have fundamental school supplies to learn and be successful. This affects not only their school work — it affects their confidence. So teachers step in and spend their own money to make sure students can learn. On average, teachers spend $560 out of their own pockets to support their students each year.In this episode of Cause Talk Radio Megan talks to Ido Leffler, Founder of Yoobi, a social enterprise company that makes beautiful school supplies sold in retailers like Target, Walmart and Costco and also gives back. For every Yoobi item purchased, the company donates a school supply item to a child in need in the U.S. in partnership with the Kids In Need Foundation.Ido and Megan chat about their incredible success as a social enterprise in a competitive and constantly changing retail environment, how they've successfully scaled the company, why design is so critical and how they measure impact.Links & Notes Yoobi Website Yoobi on Instagram Ido Leffler on LinkedI

Launched in November, Zappos’ Goods for Good is a one-stop shopping platform that aims to provide conscious consumers with a place they can shop their values.In this episode of Cause Talk Radio, Megan talks with Anna Copilevitz, Charity Buyer & Project Manager at Zappos about this new platform that curates a wide variety of purpose-focused products, from vegan items to those that give back.Megan and Anna discuss whether there was internal infighting between the cause areas (there wasn’t) and why Zappos decided to go wide instead of deep on making purpose-products accessible to as many customers as possible. While it’s still early days, we learn that the sustainability-focused brands seem to have hit a particular positive nerve among customers and employees.The two also talk about why Zappos made the decision to incorporate purpose into their bread and butter (their products!) through Goods for Good, how they’re integrating storytelling into the platform and Anna’s vision for the future of purpose at Zappo

In this episode of Cause Talk Radio, Megan chats with monthly guest Joe Waters of SelfishGiving.com for The Joe Show!The duo discusses this year’s Halo Finalists (just announced!), the new social impact book club (there’s still time to join us), Carol Cone’s new B2B purpose research and Jeff Bezos’s whopping $10 billion donation to combat global warming and more!Links & Notes Halo Award Finalists Carol Cone B2B Research From Generosity To Justice (Social Impact Book Club Book) Jeff Bezos’ $10 Billion Donation (WIRED) 00:00 - Welcome to Cause Talk Radio: The Joe Show! 01:09 - Joe Waters — SelfishGiving 01:57 - HALO Award Finalists 05:11 - Social Impact Book Club! 09:26 - Bezos Billion-Dollar Blowback 13:34 - Sponsor: Audible — The Art of Gathering 14:18 - Carol Cone's B2B Study 20:45 - Southern Exposure 2020

The use of single-use plastics has become a very visible target for sustainability advocates in the U.S. and the low-hanging fruit in the war against their usage are plastic straws. In July of 2018, Seattle was the largest city to ban its use and several large companies including Starbucks and McDonald’s followed suit.In this episode of Cause Talk Radio, Megan chats with Emma Rose, founder of FinalStraw to hear the story about why she decided to start a company that creates products to replace single-use plastic starting with a reusable, collapsible metal straw and how it all started with a mermaid beach clean-up and a Kickstarter campaign.We talk about non-consensual plastic and making it easy for people to adopt environmentally conscious behaviors and how massive corporations paved the way for her company by banning the use of plastic straws starting in 2017.According to Emma, waste is just a design flaw and she’s committed to making it fun and sexy to adopt reusables. We chat about what’s in store for reus

In this episode of Cause Talk Radio, Megan chats with Rhea Wong, a nonprofit consultant who runs the podcast the Nonprofit Lowdown for small to medium-sized nonprofits.Rhea and Megan chat about her work with nonprofit organizations, her observations about how corporate partnerships have evolved and whether smaller nonprofits should even entertain the potential of partnering with companies.Links & Notes Rhea Wong Consulting The Nonprofit Lowdown Podcast 00:00 - Welcome to Cause Talk Radio 00:46 - Introducing Rhea Wong 02:19 - Let's talk about small shops... 05:46 - Let's talk about "terrible" 08:10 - Sponsor: Audible 08:55 - Relationships that work 11:20 - The Junior Board 13:40 - Value, engagement, and being easy to work with 17:18 - Board pressure and how the Internet works 23:04 - "A portion of the proceeds..." 25:48 - Subscribe to the Non-Profit Lowdown!

Across the United States, 37 million Americans struggle with hunger. At the same time, it would take the landmass of Canada and India combined to grow all the food we throw away each year.In 2017 The Kroger Co. announced a new, national effort aimed at ending hunger in the communities it serves and eliminating waste across the company by 2025 in an initiative called Zero Hunger | Zero Waste.In this episode of Cause Talk Radio, Megan talks to Kari Armbruster, Project Manager for Zero Hunger Zero Waste about how this ambitious initiative began, what they've been able to accomplish to date and the work still to be done.Links & Notes Zero Hunger | Zero Waste site The Kroger Company Sustainability Report 00:00 - Welcome to Cause Talk Radio 00:44 - Introducing Kari Armbruster and Kroger's Zero Hunger | Zero Waste 01:51 - How did the program start? 03:44 - Greatest achievements 05:07 - Defining a model that can be replicated 06:56 - Greatest Challenges 08:57 - The Say-Do Gap in Consumer Food Waste 11:49 - Spons

In this episode of Cause Talk Radio, Mega is joined by regular Joe Waters of SelfishGiving.com for The Joe Show!The duo discusses popular posts from 2019 including several interesting research studies on guaranteed minimums and corporate development salaries as well as ‘social impact stats you should know’.They review Larry Fink’s CEO letter focused on sustainability and Robert Reich’s claim that ‘Corporate Responsibility is a Sham’ and wrap up with some resolutions for corporate development professionals.And a new bonus idea! Who’s in for a social impact book club? Drop us a line at ms@engageforgood.com and let us know if you’re interested in joining in the fun.It’s always a great episode when Joe drops by, so be sure to listen in for a fun and hopefully somewhat educational conversation!Links & Notes Infographic: How much corporate partnership pros make Study: Should nonprofits require guaranteed minimum commitments? Social Impact Stats You Should Know (Updated!) Larry Fink’s Letter to CEOs on Sustainab

In November 2019 JetBlue celebrated a major milestone in having crew members volunteer more than one million hours in their local communities, an incredible accomplishment, especially considering the size of the JetBlue employee community. They celebrated with a unique initiative called "Share Your Good" in which they encouraged employees AND consumers to share how they make the world a better place.In this episode of Cause Talk Radio, Megan welcomes Icema Gibbs, JetBlue’s Director of CSR back to the program to talk about their amazing commitment to employee engagement, why the CSR department is housed within the airline ‘People’ department and their unique approach to combining consumer and employee engagement.Links & Notes Icema on Cause Talk Radio discussing disaster giving JetBlue for Good JetBlue on Facebook JetBlue on Twitter JetBlue on Instagram

In this episode of Cause Talk Radio Megan chats with Kevin McAndrew, Senior Director of Social Innovation Partnerships at the nonprofit Save the Children. Kevin and Megan discuss how corporate partnerships have evolved over the years and how his organization has worked to scale and adapt in new and sophisticated ways. The two discuss skills based volunteering, cause marketing, employee engagement and social innovation and the distinction Kevin makes between ‘shared value’ and transformational partnerships. Kevin shares his thoughts on common mistakes nonprofits tend to make, his unique view on the value the corporate partner team brings to the table as well as some examples about how they’re co-creating some very cool new, innovative technologies with corporate partners and finish up with Kevin’s predictions for the election year.Links & Notes Save The Children’s LinkedIn Page Save The Children Website