ABSTRACT
Professionals who establish a strong personal brand and a high level of credibility have an opportunity to champion societal-changing pursuits. Storytelling in all its guises can often be more powerful than financial philanthropy alone. This chapter considers several practical examples, such as paying it forward through coaching and mentoring, actively addressing gender diversity, opposing violence against women and children, and promoting health, wellbeing, and employment initiatives for the under-privileged. It also calls-out the lost opportunities when professionals maintain a narrow and shallow focus. Indicative global estimates (based on media reports) show that one in three women will be subject to violence in her lifetime, including physical, sexual, psychological, emotional, and economic harm or abuse; and, alarmingly, four in ten of all women murdered globally have died at hands of their intimate partners. When organizations invest wisely in organizational strategies for identification, support, and confidential case-management of workers with mental health, they typically generate improved productivity.
