Even at a time when corporations and public-private partnerships are focused on “shared value,” corporate philanthropy still has an important role to play, according to Ellen Lambert, executive vice president of the Merck Co. Foundation.
“With charitable dollars, you can go into a place, invest in a local NGO or nonprofit, bring partners in and prepare your business partners back at the company for what they might not know,” said Lambert, speaking with Devex Impact on the sidelines of the BSR global conference in New York.
Lambert also talked about the professionals skills required to make partnerships work and where she finds her own inspiration to take the risks that partnerships require.
Explore related content
Join Devex, the largest online community for international development, to network with peers, discover talent and forge new partnerships – it’s free! Then sign up for the Devex Impact newsletter to receive cutting-edge news and analysis every month on the intersection of business and development.
About the author
Andrea Useem
As former associate editor and content director for Devex Impact, Andrea created and managed cutting-edge content on the intersection of business and international development. An experienced multimedia journalist, Andrea also served as leadership editor at the Washington Post and spent three years as a foreign correspondent in Eastern Africa reporting for publications including the Boston Globe, Dallas Morning News, and San Francisco Chronicle.