E-Book Overview
Despite enormous investments of time and money, are we making a dent on the social and environmental challenges of our time? What if we could exponentially increase our impact? Around the world, a new generation is looking beyond greater profits, for meaningful purpose. But, unlike business, few social interventions have achieved significant impact at scale. Inspired by the modern innovation practices, popularized by bestseller The Lean Startup, that have fueled technology breakthroughs touching every aspect of our lives,Lean Impactturns our attention to a new goal - radically greater social good. Social change is far more complicated than building a new app. It requires more listening, more care, and more stakeholders. To make a lasting difference, solutions must be embraced by beneficiaries, address root causes, and include an engine that can accelerate growth to reach the scale of the need.Lean Impactoffers bold ideas to reach audacious goals through customer insight, rapid experimentation and iteration, and a relentless pursuit of impact. Ann Mei Chang brings a unique perspective from across sectors, from her years as a tech executive in Silicon Valley to her most recent experience as the Chief Innovation Officer at USAID. She vividly illustrates the book with real stories from interviews with over 200 organizations across the US and around the world. Whether you are a nonprofit, social enterprise, triple bottom line company, foundation, government agency, philanthropist, impact investor, or simply donate your time and money,Lean Impactis an essential guide to maximizing social impact and scale.
E-Book Content
More Advance Acclaim for Lean Impact “Ann Mei Chang understands what it takes to create social impact on a massive scale. In this book, she lays out a clear course for developing more effective solutions to our greatest human challenges, including the persistence of extreme poverty, and most importantly ensuring they are able to reach millions.” —Sir Fazle Hasan Abed, Founder and Chairperson, BRAC “Run, don’t walk, to buy this book if you are interested in innovation or simply in finding solutions to our world’s current problems. Lean Impact is smart and thoughtful, a mix of head and heart, practical and yet full of hope. Ann Mei Chang’s wisdom will provide a useful guide for how to think, and more important, how to act.” —Jacqueline Novogratz, CEO, Acumen “Lean Impact helps us all see a brighter future in fighting global poverty – by bringing lessons from innovation successes in the tech, NGO, and business worlds to bear on the world’s biggest problems. It’s a book anyone who cares about making change in the world should read and take to heart. I believe innovation and learning fast from mistakes is what will ultimately save the lives of at least 10 million children in the next decade and hopefully more.” —Carolyn Miles, President and CEO, Save the Children “Innovation and scale are two of the hottest topics in the social sector today – yet that attention has not yet led to nearly enough breakthrough ideas achieving widespread impact. Ann Mei Chang’s book Lean Impact explains why current approaches limit our impact and what we can do to fix that. Based on deep work across sectors, Chang
offers fresh insights into how leaders can chart a path from innovation to impact at scale. An important read for all those seeking change – in the United States and around the world.” —Jeffrey L. Bradach, Managing Partner and Cofounder, Bridgespan Group “Ann Mei Chang’s new book Lean Impact is a must‐read for development professionals, policy‐makers, and indeed anyone interested in ensuring more effective programs to lift people out of poverty. Chang brings a ‘disruptive’ sensibility garnered from her many years in Silicon Valley to the challenges of international development and