Social Profit Orientation

Social Profit Orientation is an organization-wide perspective whereby entities embrace in their core mission the creation of sustainable, positive social and/or environmental impacts on individuals, communities, and society at large.

Organizations that embrace a social profit orientation proactively invest resources such as knowledge, infrastructure, labor, reputation, money, and time with the explicit goal of enhancing the common good, especially improving the well-being of people and safeguarding the health of the planet.

A social profit orientation (SPO) reflects a deliberate, conscious organizational effort to address systemic social or environmental challenges—it is not merely a by-product of making financial profits.

Awards and Recognition

Winner of the AMA-EBSCO-RRBM Award for Responsible Research in Marketing for “Social Profit Orientation: Lessons from Organizations Committed to Building a Better World” which appeared in the Journal of Marketing.

SPO Research & Resources

Research

Below are research resources designed to provide in-depth insights into Social Profit Orientation (SPO). These resources include scholarly articles and upcoming commentaries from leading academics and business leaders, highlighting the importance and application of SPO in various contexts.

Teaching Guides

Below are teaching resources designed to assist faculty in educating their students about Social Profit Orientation (SPO). These resources include a comprehensive PowerPoint deck that compellingly illustrates the core concepts of SPO, aiming to inspire students to apply these principles in their life and work. Additionally, a detailed teaching guide accompanies the PowerPoint lecture, providing instructions and context to facilitate the effective use of the slides in class.

Comprehensive Lecture (approximately 90 minutes)

  • Please click here to download the Teaching Guide, which will provide an overview of the key points to review in each slide. A link to download the Social Profit Orientation Comprehensive Lecture presentation can be found within the Teaching Guide.

Two Part Lecture (approximately 45 minutes per lecture)

Purpose Ignited: How a Social Profit Orientation Begins

While many organizations express a desire to create positive social impact, the leaders of organizations that fully embrace a Social Profit Orientation often have a defining moment that changed how they viewed the purpose of their work.

Our research published in the Journal of Service Management explores how these moments occur and how they influence leaders to integrate social and environmental impact into the core mission of their organizations. The study identifies epiphanies, sudden, transformative insights that reshape how leaders understand their responsibilities and their organization’s potential impact on society.

These insights often serve as inflection points that ignite a deeper commitment to aligning business success with creating meaningful societal value. This research helps explain how purpose-driven leadership begins and why some organizations ultimately embed social impact into their core strategy.

The research identifies four common pathways through which these transformative insights occur:

  • Personal Crossroads – Moments of personal challenge or reflection that lead leaders to reconsider their priorities and purpose.
  • Immersion – Exposure to societal challenges or unmet needs that reveals opportunities for organizations to create meaningful change.
  • Purposeful Imagination – Visionary insights that challenge existing assumptions and inspire new approaches to solving social problems.
  • Intentional Exploration – Purposeful engagement with new experiences, ideas, or communities that reveal new possibilities for social impact.

Purpose Ignited Research

Below are resources related to how leaders’ epiphanic experiences ignite their commitment to a Social Profit Orientation.

Purpose Ignited Teaching Guide

Below are teaching resources designed to assist faculty in educating their students about how epiphanic experiences ignite purpose-driven leadership and lead organizations to embrace a Social Profit Orientation. These resources include a comprehensive PowerPoint lecture illustrating the key concepts from the research, along with a detailed teaching guide that provides context and instructions for using the slides in class.

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