In 2001, Sara launched SVT Group. As an aspiring agent of change with a close group of like minded people, the new business was launched to figure out how to make SROI ubiquitous in the name of focusing enterprises, investors and others on a broader definition of business value. By 2010 we were thinking more broadly of impact management as a standard business practice. And in 2021 we were thrilled with the way the market is breaking open for impact and ESG information, while challenged to ensure that the nature of the practice is meaningful in terms of real outcomes for people and the planet as it goes mainstream.
To celebrate and inform our next 20 years, James, David, Katia and Sara took the opportunity to reconnect with a number of the fellow ‘impact travellers’ who’ve been with us along the way, and we had the pleasure of getting together with those who were able to join us for a small party in San Francisco. We also made a video to commemorate the milestone and collect some reflections from a number of our most esteemed mentors, partners, colleagues and collaborators – Jed Emerson, Kate Ruff, Courtney Kemp, Eric Israel, Simon Favel, Yau Ben-Or, Yuwei Shi and Brett Galimidi.
“If there’s one thing you’ve got, Sara, it’s determination! It’s always been inspiring and I carry some of that with me to this day” – Brett Galimidi
“If you’re willing to learn, this journey is a joy for you” – Eric Israel
“I know how difficult it is to solve a multi-objective optimization problem, let alone invent a whole set of management practices based on that, but I’m not skeptical any more, because behind that impact management flywheel there will be more people pushing and pulling. People will figure it out sooner or later…My wish for SVT and Impact Management Academy is to make that happen sooner than later!” – Yuwei Shi
Onward, together!