In the new episode of the Building Competitive Advantage in a Sustainable World podcast, David Young — BCG Henderson Institute Fellow researching Sustainable Business Model Innovation — interviews Vicki Escarra, Former Global CEO, Opportunity International; Former President & CEO, Feeding America; and Former CMO, Delta Airlines.

Vicki shares her inspiring journey across the private and social sectors. She reflects on the importance of cross-sector collaboration to drive meaningful, societal impact at scale while generating benefits for all organizations involved, including corporations. She shares her lessons learned on what it takes to build effective strategic partnerships for collective impact. Organizations involved need to: Set a common agenda, clarify the mutual benefits, match skilled resources to execute on both sides, measure and share progress frequently, and communicate.

Trust, shared purpose, focus on impact, clarity of objectives, and accountability are the critical enablers for success. Applying these principles, organizations across sectors have a massive opportunity to create social impact, business benefits, and lay the foundation for a great legacy.