Pro bono projects are a significant component of A.T. Kearney’s commitment to corporate social responsibility. These projects reflect our passion for making a difference—economically, socially and environmentally.
Tom Kearney built this commitment into our corporate DNA through a long list of pro bono work, including accepting a call from President Franklin Roosevelt in 1945 to lead a mission to China to help the country improve defense readiness for the war effort. For this work, he earned a U.S. Medal of Freedom and a Victory Medal from the Chinese government.
Today, we proudly carry on this tradition and continue to create positive change in our communities through our skills and expertise.
Chicago Fashion Focus
The Mayor’s Fashion Council Chicago was formed in April 2006 to identify the challenges facing designers who live and work in Chicago and advise them on ways the city and industry can work together to overcome those challenges.
A.T. Kearney worked with the Fashion Council to determine the city’s existing strengths and the steps that could be taken to turn Chicago into a global fashion hub. We researched major fashion centers, such as New York, London and Paris, and other more focused fashion cities, including Los Angeles and Milan. Based on our insights, we outlined several dimensions of success. These dimensions include:
- Creating a central fashion committee, fashion events and a district
- Developing emerging designers and their careers
- Establishing a long-term vision for the city – one that pursues global prominence while embracing Chicago’s local identity
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For more information, please contact the authors:
Michael Moriarty
Sara Matlock
October 2009
Dubai Cares strategy and organization
Dubai Cares was launched in September 2007 by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, with the initial goal to raise money to help educate one million children in poor countries. Within weeks, Dubai Cares managed to fundraise $1 billion in total collected assets. The overwhelming success of the charity drive reinforced the need to develop a truly differentiating strategy and organization for this new, globally active philanthropist.
A.T. Kearney worked with Dubai Cares’ management to define the future set-up of the charity. In detail, the joint project defined for Dubai Cares:
- Vision, mission, and objectives
- Operating model, organizational structure, and high-level processes
- Promotion strategy for its causes
- Disbursement strategy, in particular how to best manage disbursement from partner selection through impact evaluation
Dubai Cares will adopt a truly innovative, entrepreneurial philanthropy approach. It strives to achieve the maximum return for its philanthropic investment activities, and drives substantial change and impact in its focus areas, leading to visible and transparent results. Dubai Cares expresses the Emirate's desire to play an effective role in securing a better tomorrow for future generations.
For more information on this project, visit the website.
Robert Ziegler is a partner in A.T. Kearney's Dubai office.
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New York State strategy for economic growth and revitalization
We conducted a study for the Empire State Development Corporation to provide fresh, objective and strategic business perspectives. Among our key findings is that New York State could double its rate of job growth by focusing its economic development investments on emerging sectors of the "Innovation Economy" such as nanotechnology, bioscience and cleantech.
The report estimates that investing in emerging sectors has the potential to create up to 330,000 new jobs by 2014, doubling the rate of job growth the state experienced between 2002 and 2006. In addition, higher skilled jobs in the Innovation Economy pay, on average, twice what jobs outside the Innovation Economy pay and generate 3.5 additional jobs.
For more information on this project, read the full report, or our press release.
Jim Singer is a partner in A.T. Kearney's New York office.
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A.T. Kearney consultants partner with students to "Create a Difference"
A.T. Kearney consultants across Central Europe join with students for its "Create a Difference" program through a variety of pro bono projects. The program is a partnership with the schools of the "Foundation of German Industry" and the Student JCNetwork. In total, the program involves about 300 undergraduate business students who work with A.T. Kearney consultants on various community improvement projects.
It's a win-win-win solution: communities and organizations gain needed help and direction to make positive changes; students gain valuable experience and contribute to important social and environmental causes; and consultants contribute to their communities while helping the students develop skills and social commitment as future leaders.
Some of the recent projects include:
- Creating a fundraising strategy for the Friends of the German State Opera Unter den Linden to refurbish the historic Berlin opera house, requiring an investment of 150 million Euros
- Developing an expanded international high school exchange program with emerging countries together with a business school non-profit startup
- Establishing a merchandising strategy for the Elbe Philharmonic Hall, the new concert hall in Hamburg
- Developing a tourism strategy for East Germany's Havelland region
- Advising small- and medium-sized companies, members of the IHK Industry and Trade Chamber in the Lower Rhine area, on how to tap into the opportunities presented by the global marketplace
For more information see the website www.create-a-difference.com in German language.
Dietrich Neumann is a partner in A.T. Kearney's Berlin office.
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Strategic plan for the United Way India
The United Way has been in India a few short years, but it quickly created a solid foundation by working with not-for-profit partners. Its early emphasis was on tsunami relief, such as large-scale reconstruction projects to support individuals and families. But in 2007, it was ready to take a more strategic direction to support its continued growth and expand its critical work.
A.T. Kearney worked with the United Way Executive Director and the Executive Board to define a vision and identify specific areas of focus. The team created a strategic implementation plan that included short- and long-term goals. The short-term goals include:
- Education for 2 million children each year
- Vocational and livelihood training, which includes 500 vocational training centers at a sustainable cost of $83 per student
- Water management for 200 villages each year, with a goal of reaching 1,000 villages in five years
Long-term goals focus on building the capacities of partner organizations, and integrating a revenue stream into social projects to ensure their long-term sustainability.
"A.T. Kearney has been a critical partner to United Way's initiatives in India," said Shibani Sachdeva, Executive Director, United Way India. "Vivek Gupta, managing director of the firm's India unit, has led several critical roles involving industry participation at the highest levels and guiding the organization's charter. We appreciate A.T. Kearney's commitment to our efforts, and look forward to continued support in the future."
Learn more about United Way India.
Vivek Gupta is a partner in A.T. Kearney's Mumbai office.
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