The Greater Good Project will be launched on November 12th

Richard Eidlin, with the Greater Good Project, was kind enough to sit down with us and share the excitement of this upcoming launch:

Richard, thanks for meeting with us. Can you tell us - what is the Greater Good Project?

Richard: Greater Good is a business development program, run by the Progress Group, that identifies, trains and funds low and moderate-income for-profit entrepreneurs along Colorado’s Front Range. The program includes a network of services designed to introduce sustainability and social responsibility practices to this group of aspiring triple-bottom line businesspeople.

Chuck: Tell us about the launch on November 12.

Richard: The Greater Good Project will be launched on November 12th at the Mi Casa Resource Center (360 Acoma Street, Denver Co 802234) with a half-day program featuring some of Colorado's leading economic development organizations and emerging sustainable entrepreneurs. We’ll be highlighting the need for a program like Greater Good and reviewing the project's scope including training courses, professional mentoring, an entrepreneurs showcase and an investment fund run by the Colorado Enterprise Fund. Kevin Johansen of the Business Catapult and Cec Ortiz, the Deputy Director for Denver's Office of Economic Development will be among the speakers.

Chuck: Richard, How do you envision businesses being used to transform communities?

Richard: Businesses set a tone for how communities develop their economies and social values. Businesspeople are looked to as leaders within the communities within they operate. They help to define a communities success to the extent to which they emphasize local hiring, support nonprofits and pay decent wages. Regardless of the service or product a company offers, it can be a positive force in addressing social and environmental issues, while still being profitable. (IN fact, it's likely to be more profitable by doing so). Example after example show that companies whose reputation and brand are associated with being a responsible member of the community are overwhelmingly patronized by that community. We believe that companies that adopt sustainability and triple bottom line business practices will have an clear competitive advantage in the market.

Chuck: How can entrepreneurs play a part?

Richard: Entrepreneurs are risk takers by nature, looking beyond the status quo and seeing opportunity to deliver a service that society needs. As such, entrepreneurs can be change agents within their communities where they operate. Being innovators, entrepreneurs see the value in moving quickly and developing partnerships. They understand that success depends on having a plan and executing well. The goal of the Greater Good project is to support businesspeople from disadvantaged backgrounds who have a great entrepreneurial venture underway, but lack the resources - financial and technical - to scale it. We want to involve successful entrepreneurs in helping foster the next generation of colleagues. The Greater Good is focused on providing low and moderate income people with a range of sustainability and triple-bottom line practices that will increase their competitiveness.

Chuck: Everyone wants to know how being a socially responsible and sustainable business will help them make more money? What’s the ROI on setting up your business to create significance in the world around you?

Richard: Whether large or small, companies across the US and the world that embrace socially responsible and sustainable business practices, find themselves with a competitive advantage. As the Harvard Business Review recently noted, sustainability isn’t the burden on the bottom line that many claim it to be. In fact, becoming more environmentally and socially conscious can lower costs and increase revenues. In the future, only companies that make sustainability a goal will achieve competitive advantage.

Chuck: What one piece of advice would you leave with business owners?

Richard: The era of sustainability has arrived. Consumers, governments and many of the world's largest companies are actively incorporating environmental stewardship and corporate social responsibility practices into their core operations. A company's financial success, whether its in the financial service, food industry, mining, software development, consumer products, energy, etc increasingly depends on its reputation as a good corporate citizen. The expectation that a company be sustainable is no longer considered a fringe idea. It's becoming a necessity for long-term business success.

Chuck: How do sign up to participate in the Greater Good Project and the November 12 event?

Richard: Please visit http://www.proggroup.com/greater-good-project/agenda.html

Thanks, Richard! We're looking forward to a great launch with you!