Events at UBC Sauder

Behavioural Insights into Business for Social Good Conference 2024

Event details

Fri, Jun 14 - Sat, Jun 15 2024

Terminal City Club
837 West Hastings Street, Vancouver BC V6C 1B6 Canada

Join us on Friday, June 14, and Saturday, June 15, 2024

The Peter P. Dhillon Centre for Business Ethics is hosting the 2024 Behavioural Insights into Business for Social Good conference to create a cross-disciplinary dialogue about how insights from behavioral science research and business can be harnessed in a synergistic fashion to facilitate the greater social good, which we define as actions that benefit the planet and the people that live on it.

Program

Summit on Business for Social Good: Balancing Purpose and Profit (Jun. 14)

Join us for a morning of inspiration and insight featuring industry and academic leaders. Our featured speakers will define and debate business for social good, and take your questions about if and how businesses can find the balance between purpose and profit.

Jiamei Bai, Partner at McKinsey and Senior Vice President of Member Engagement, lululemon (on secondment)
Tabatha Bull, President and CEO of the Canadian Council for Indigenous Business
Ronnie Chatterji, the Mark Burgess & Lisa Benson-Burgess Distinguished Professor of Business and Public Policy, Duke University, and author of "Can Business Save the Earth?"
Glen Clark, Senior Advisor to Rogers Communications and Tiny Ltd. and former Premier of British Columbia

Research in Focus: Behavioural Insights into Business for Social Good (Jun. 14 & 15)

Join us for a day and a half of research talks and networking sessions highlighting research at the intersection of behavioural science, business, and the social good. Typical topics include integrating social responsibility, sustainability, equity and inclusion, and reconciliation into business strategy and operations, and providing options for individuals and communities to choose healthy, prosocial, and sustainable behaviours that have a collective positive impact.

Registration

Event registration includes all events and is $545 ($325 for students).

We are now sold out! Due to venue capacity limits, we will not be able to offer on-site registration.

For the morning summit only, click here.

Overview

Businesses are increasingly responding to the multiple crises we face, like climate change, social and economic inequities, and global health issues. Some businesses are integrating social responsibility, sustainability, equity and inclusion, and reconciliation into their strategy and operations. Other businesses are providing options for individuals to choose healthy, prosocial, and sustainable behaviours that have a collective positive impact. We call this business for social good—business actions that benefit the planet and the people that live on it. As the demands on business grow and evolve, a pressing question arises: How can businesses find the balance between purpose and profit?

Summit on Business for Social Good: Balancing Purpose and Profit

June 14th, 2024: 8:00am to 12:00pm

Our Friday morning summit brings together the business expertise of industry leaders and the research insights of academic leaders to explore how businesses can balance purpose and profit. Our featured speakers will present in pairs to share their unique perspectives. After each pair, attendees will have time to reflect, discuss, and formulate questions to feed into a moderated discussion.

Featured Speakers

Jiamei Bai

Partner at McKinsey and Senior Vice President of Member Engagement, lululemon (on secondment)

Jiamei Bai is a Consumer and Retail Partner at McKinsey & Company, where she combines a passion for design and deep analytical background to serve global brands and investors on topics of strategy, consumer insights, loyalty, and omnichannel growth. Jiamei is currently on secondment to lululemon as the Senior Vice President of Member Engagement. She previously spent 10 years leading transformation programs across sectors including financial services, resources, and manufacturing. Jiamei holds an MBA and an MS in Biomedical Engineering from UBC and a Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Waterloo.

Tabatha Bull

President and CEO of the Canadian Council for Indigenous Business

Tabatha Bull is Anishinaabe, a proud member of Nipissing First Nation. As President and CEO of the Canadian Council for Indigenous Business (CCIB), she is committed to help rebuild and strengthen the path towards reconciliation and a prosperous Indigenous economy to benefit all Canadians. Tabatha frequently provides input to the Senate and House of the Parliament of Canada and serves on many boards and committees, including the Dexterra Group, Wigwamen Inc., CN’s inaugural Indigenous Advisory Council, and Catalyst CEO advisory board. Tabatha was awarded 2022 CEO of the Year by the Ontario Chamber of Commerce.

Ronnie Chatterji

Mark Burgess & Lisa Benson-Burgess Distinguished Professor of Business and Public Policy at Duke University

Aaron “Ronnie” Chatterji, Ph.D. is the Mark Burgess & Lisa Benson-Burgess Distinguished Professor of Business and Public Policy at Duke University. Ronnie works at the intersection of academia, public policy and business, investigating the most important forces shaping our economy and society. He is the co-author of two books, “Can Business Save the Earth?” and “The Role of Innovation and Entrepreneurship in Economic Growth”. Ronnie has worked in both the Biden and Obama Administrations in senior economic policy positions, including mostly recently leading the implementation of the $52 billion CHIPS and Science Act.

Glen Clark

Senior Advisor to Rogers Communications and Tiny Ltd. and former Premier of British Columbia

Glen Clark is a senior advisor to Rogers Communications and Tiny Ltd. Prior to that he was the President and COO of The Jim Pattison Group. He is also a member of the Board of Directors of Westshore Terminals Investment Corporation, an export terminal company and Tersa Earth, a small biotechnology startup. Prior to his corporate roles, Glen served as Premier of British Columbia, Minister of Finance and Corporate Relations, and Minister of Employment and Investment. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Simon Fraser University, and a master’s degree in Community and Regional Planning from the University of British Columbia.

Research in Focus: Behavioural Insights into Business for Social Good

June 14th, 2024: 12:00pm to 5:00pm &
June 15th, 2024: 8:30am to 5:00pm

The Friday afternoon and Saturday sessions will include research talks and networking breaks highlighting research at the intersection of behavioural science, business, and the social good. At the end of the summit and conference, we aim to generate an evidence-based, research-driven agenda for how business can lead with purpose; a business-informed and responsive agenda for new cross-disciplinary academic research about how business can be a vehicle for social good; and a plan for further increasing awareness and demand for business for social good among employees, customers, and the wider community.

Below are some examples of the types of research topics we typically feature.

Perceptions and outcomes of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)
Encouraging Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion
Taking action toward Reconciliation
Cause related marketing, philanthropy, promoting diversity, promoting prosocial actions, and ethical (unethical) business practices
Unique models of business that have social impact
Encouraging positive behaviors such as prosocial behaviors (e.g., donating money and volunteering), sustainable behaviors, citizenship behaviors, etc.