Who is Jane Nelson?

Jane Nelson is revolutionising corporate responsibility by proving that profit and purpose can be powerfully aligned, not competing forces. As the founding director of Harvard Kennedy School's Corporate Responsibility Initiative since 2004, she champions business as a catalyst for positive systemic change.

Her pioneering work with Harvard Business School's "Purpose and Profit - Creating Shared Value" executive programme has influenced countless organisations to embed sustainability into their core business strategies. I was fortunate enough to complete this course and experience firsthand how her frameworks help companies generate both economic and social value simultaneously.

"Corporate responsibility is no longer about philanthropy or compliance, but about *how* companies make their money, not just how they spend it," Nelson asserts. This perspective exemplifies her progressive economic thinking that rejects traditional trade-offs between business interests and societal needs.

Her influence extends globally through advisory roles with the World Economic Forum, United Nations Global Compact, and numerous Fortune 500 companies, where she consistently demonstrates that responsible business practices drive innovation, competitiveness, and long-term value creation.

A Rhodes Scholar with degrees from the University of Natal and Oxford, Nelson has authored six books and over 100 publications, receiving the Academy of Management's 2015 "Best Book Award" for her work on corporate responsibility coalitions.

What possibilities emerge when we move beyond seeing business success and social impact as competing priorities?

Jane Nelson