Why Cisco made a difference

To the Editor:

I’m writing in response to the summary of Michael Porter and Mark Kramer’s Harvard Business Review article that appeared in your December 12, 2002, issue (“Press Clippings”).

In the article and your summary of it, Cisco System’s Networking Academy is cited as an example of corporate philanthropy that creates both corporate and social impact. The Networking Academy is an excellent example of “context-focused” corporate philanthropy. But what makes the Cisco example stand out is the Networking Academy’s success at creating social and corporate benefits that impact more than just Cisco itself.

The Networking Academy creates corporate benefits for the information-technology industry, not just for Cisco alone, while simultaneously creating measurable social value. Because Cisco was focused on a problem that affected the competitive context of its industry, it was able to leverage expertise and partnerships to multiply both the social and corporate value created by each philanthropic dollar spent.

Mindy Oakley
Consultant
Foundation Strategy Group
Boston