Future business leaders will need to navigate an evolving landscape shaped by global challenges, which will influence how they build sustainable and equitable companies. Instead of prioritizing a short-term approach focused on profits, forward-thinking leaders can embrace a broader perspective on the role of business—one that recognizes its systemic impact and prioritizes long-term social responsibility

This social change mindset for business leaders was the focus of a recent Sorenson Impact Institute virtual convening, The Next Generation of Changemakers: Students, Impact, and Social Change. The conversation on how the combined power of education and business can drive positive change in the world featured these academic innovators:

• Amelia Angella, Social Enterprise Initiative, Harvard Business School
• Andrew Biros, Center for Social Innovation and Entrepreneurship, University of San Diego
• Allison Boxer, Sorenson Impact Institute, University of Utah, David Eccles School of Business
• Moderator Chad Salvadore, CFO of the Sorenson Impact Institute

Boxer said universities can incorporate impact-oriented tools and skills to prepare today’s students for economic decision-making in the future. “The goal is to change the way they think about the role of business in the world,” she said. “Business is a force that is shaping our world, whether we like it or not. So how will we use it?”

It’s vital for educators and universities to develop student awareness of the opportunities to address social challenges through business practices, Biros said. “Why should we do this work? Because our world needs more of it,” he said. “There are a lot of headwinds that we face, and I sincerely believe that impact-focused work is going to be our future.”

As public expectations of the role of business change, so do the qualities that distinguish successful leaders, Angella said. “Those skills that social impact leaders have innately or that they’ve had to build over time—skills like empathy, like listening, like building resilience, turning down the temperature … these are skills that social impact leaders use every day that are increasingly very, very core to any Fortune 500 CEO, much less a social impact leader.”

Sign up to watch the full discussion and learn more about:

• The importance of teaching impact-focused courses at business schools and universities.
• Skills and mindsets students can gain from impact-focused learning.
• Ways to overcome barriers to implementing impact-focused education into a broader curriculum.
• The relationship between impact and value creation in the global economy.
• Student demand for impact-focused courses.