Giving Compass' Take:

• Johnson & Johnson is a company dedicated to collaborating with other organizations to provide the best services that will strengthen the global health force through impact philanthropy. 

• The company has spent decades creating partnerships and promoting collaborative effort to change human health and better the world. How can other organizations and foundations emulate the same relationship-building strategies?

• Read about how donors can make an impact on global health. 

In 1943, long before corporate social responsibility (CSR) became a catchphrase, Johnson & Johnson Chairman Robert Wood Johnson wrote the company’s now-famous “Our Credo,” which states that the company must be “responsible to the communities in which we live and work and to the world community as well.” While language like this is commonplace in corporate America today, when Johnson wrote those words, it was considered extraordinary for a company to put people before profit, and to claim that an obligation to help better society was embedded in its mission.

The very first line of that message states that meeting the needs of doctors and nurses is Johnson & Johnson’s first responsibility. In line with that goal, our employee secondment programs—which allow employees to work directly with our non-government organization (NGO) partners for up to six months—support the company’s larger focus on the global health workforce, especially health workers in developing countries who provide essential care for millions of people.

For example, in countries where the maternal and newborn death rate is very high, Johnson & Johnson funds programs that train birth attendants to manage complications arising from childbirth. In facilities where there are few or no doctors, these attendants are often the only health workers available to help women and their newborns.

We have spent decades supporting nonprofits and creating partnerships to change the trajectory of human health. Recognizing that many of our employees wanted to participate as well, we created our Talent for Good strategy to support various levels of employee engagement.

Exploring investments beyond philanthropic dollars takes a thorough assessment of corporate assets and strengths. It also requires that we have a healthy commitment to collaboration, and to building meaningful partnerships with nonprofits, governments, intergovernmental agencies, and civil society.

Read the full article about impact philanthropy by Lauren Moore at Stanford Social Innovation Review