In this episode of Speaking of Purpose, host Sona Khosla sits down with Joelle Emerson, CEO and co-founder of Paradigm, to unpack the hot topic of DEI. They explore what the charged acronym really means, who is driving the debate, what the data says about it, and how companies have shifted course from 2020's reckoning to today's retrenchment. And they look at practical ways that companies can adapt their strategies in a risky legal and political environment to embed fairness, driving performance...
Jul 09, 2025•51 min•Season 3Ep. 3
In this episode of Speaking of Purpose , host Sona Khosla speaks with Brian Tippens, Chief Social Impact and Inclusion Officer at Cisco, during Benevity Live! 2024, about the company’s $300 million commitment to social justice and what it looks like to lead with purpose inside a global tech giant. They explore how Cisco connects community impact to business value, how Brian's team developed a framework for responding to complex societal issues, and why social impact leadership today is as much a...
Jun 30, 2025•22 min•Season 3Ep. 2
In this episode of Speaking of Purpose , host Sona Khosla sits down with Jason Saul, CEO of the Impact Genome Registry and Executive Director at the University of Chicago's Center for Impact Sciences. Together, they unpack the chaos behind how nonprofits measure success and reveal a bold new approach that could transform how billions in charitable giving gets allocated. From the hidden inefficiencies plaguing corporate philanthropy to the controversial idea that measurement might actually empowe...
Jun 18, 2025•49 min•Season 3Ep. -3
Guest: Tricia Stevens, Former Charitable Giving and Ethical Campaigns Manager, Lush Cosmetics North America Wouldn’t it be nice to dig into a case study that shows how real companies — and the real people behind the scenes — have built relationships with Indigenous communities from the ground up? Enter Tricia Stevens, the former Charitable Giving and Ethical Campaigns Manager at Lush Cosmetics North America. In this episode, you’ll hear how Tricia and her team humbly embraced the unknown, helpin...
Oct 21, 2022•43 min•Season 2Ep. 4
Guest: Lourdes Inga, Executive Director of International Funders for Indigenous Peoples (IFIP) How deeply do you think about the way you give? How can we give in ways that are both impactful and respectful of Indigenous culture and experiences? Lourdes Inga, Executive Director of IFIP, helps us understand the complexities of Indigenous philanthropy. Indigenous Peoples constitute the largest minority in the world, but the rate of giving to their causes is comparatively low. In this episode, we’ll...
Oct 14, 2022•26 min•Season 2Ep. 3
Guest: Rukka Sombolinggi, Secretary General of AMAN (Aliansi Masyarakat Adat Nusantara/Alliance of Indigenous Peoples of the Archipelago). It’s no secret that relationships — both past and present — between Indigenous Peoples, governments and corporations all over the world are troubled. How did this happen? And what does this look like today? We asked Rukka Sombolinggi, the Secretary General of AMAN, to share perspectives from the communities she serves. In this episode, you’ll hear stories of ...
Oct 07, 2022•40 min•Season 2Ep. 2
Guest: Melissa K. Nelson, Ph.D., Indigenous Scholar, Professor of Sustainability, Leader at The Cultural Conservancy How should companies and individuals begin the process of reconciliation? Indigenous Scholar, Professor of Sustainability, and Leader at The Cultural Conservancy, Melissa Nelson, takes us through past colonization and settlement, residential schools, and how history continues to shape the experiences Indigenous Peoples have today. In this episode, you’ll hear stories and gain know...
Sep 30, 2022•35 min•Season 2Ep. 1
Welcome to Season 2 of Speaking of Purpose! Join host, Sona Khosla, as she gets curious about how we can do our part in driving change around the challenges Indigenous communities face across the world, and Indigenous ways of knowing. Tune in for a sneak peek of what’s to come this season as we share our learnings from speaking with four remarkable guests about exploring reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples. wherever you listen to podcasts () Learn more about Speaking of Purpose or Benevity on...
Sep 26, 2022•5 min
Guest: Bryan de Lottinville, Founder and Executive Chairperson, Benevity. Business is now our most trusted institution. Employees look to their workplaces to address social issues, and consumers increasingly support brands based on their actions as much as their products. As the role of business in society changes, it takes genuine leaders to challenge the status quo. One such leader is Benevity’s Founder, Bryan de Lottinville. On this season’s final episode, he joins us to reflect on how he dev...
Oct 15, 2021•33 min•Season 1Ep. 10
Guest: Anil Soni, Chief Executive Officer, The WHO Foundation Anil Soni is passionate about vaccine equity. But as our conversation with the CEO of the WHO Foundation unfolds, we learn that vaccine equity is about much more than vaccines. The issue is a microcosm of systemic and generational injustice that continues to perpetuate today. Anil joins us to discuss why vaccinating the entire world is critical for global health and economies - and how the private sector plays a vital role in making i...
Oct 01, 2021•43 min•Season 1Ep. 9
Guests: Allison Fary, Senior Program Manager and Stephanie Franco, Head of Corporate Giving and Volunteerism They say necessity is the mother of invention, and it holds true even when the topic is the changing face of volunteering. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit and in-person volunteering was no longer possible, companies were forced to rethink the way they gave back to their communities during a time of profound need. Luckily, the answer was right in front of them. Just as they introduced a hyb...
Aug 20, 2021•21 min•Season 1Ep. 8
Guest: Maya Chorengel, Co-Managing Partner, The Rise Fund The growing importance of corporate purpose and environmental, social and governance (ESG) strategies are changing the way boardrooms operate. The past year has shown just how important it is for companies to lead the way, particularly on social issues. From protecting frontline workers to striving for racial justice, companies have the reach and resources to create real change. Maya Chorengel has spent over two decades contributing to th...
Aug 05, 2021•25 min•Season 1Ep. 7
Guest: Whitney Dailey, Senior Vice President of Marketing and Research Insights, Porter Novelli We know the idea that companies should address and contribute to social change has taken hold. But this responsibility has put a new kind of stress on business leaders — the threat of getting canceled. As companies uphold their values and wade into difficult conversations, they are bound to be faced with backlash from consumers, activist groups, and even their own employees. On this week’s episode, we...
Jul 15, 2021•16 min•Season 1Ep. 6
Guest: Bruce Simpson, Senior Advisor to McKinsey & Co., CEO of Stephen A. Schwarzman Foundation Over the past few decades, we’ve seen the priorities of business shift. A company’s primary responsibility used to be the pursuit of profit. But now, in the age of stakeholder capitalism, we’re seeing a surge in corporate purpose. But what exactly is stakeholder capitalism, and what impact does it have on a company’s bottom line? Bruce Simpson has the answers. Bruce has worked with clients across ...
Jun 30, 2021•26 min•Season 1Ep. 5
Guest: Aisha Thomas-Petit, Chief Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Officer, AMC Networks These days, more and more people are bringing their full selves – their culture, their background, and their lived experiences – with them to work. The days of living with a clear divide between personal life and work life are over. As the expectation grows for workplaces to create a culture that supports people as their full selves, the question becomes: How are businesses adjusting to the increasing call for...
Jun 10, 2021•24 min•Season 1Ep. 4
Guest: Altaf Gilani, Head of Product for Microsoft Rewards, Give with Bing, and Bing Rebates Customers are demanding that companies take action on the social causes that affect our communities every day. Truly visionary companies, like Microsoft, are taking it a step further. Their giving programs are designed not only to have an impact, but to engage their customers to define where that impact is directed. Altaf Gilani spearheaded Microsoft’s Give with Bing – a rewards program that enables user...
May 18, 2021•16 min•Season 1Ep. 3
Guests: Christina Lewis and Stephanie Ellis-Smith, Co-founders of Give Blck In the wake of the summer of 2020, when the Black Lives Matter movement became an urgent conversation around the world, donations to racial equity causes through our giving platform reached an all-time high, at $166 million. Just six months later, that momentum slowed down and donations returned to their previous levels. It was during that summer that Christina Lewis and Stephanie Ellis-Smith joined forces to create Give...
May 11, 2021•19 min•Season 1Ep. 2
Guest: François Locoh-Donou, President and CEO of F5 Networks François Locoh-Donou is the President and CEO of F5 Networks, a company that supports 48 of the world’s Fortune 50 companies by creating apps that connect businesses with their customers and help employees do their jobs. But what makes F5 truly special is the way their corporate purpose is ignited by employees, supported by leaders, and ingrained into every aspect of the business’ DNA. In our first episode, learn from François about h...
May 09, 2021•17 min•Season 1Ep. 1
Introducing Speaking of Purpose… by Benevity! We want you to join us as we explore purpose. What does it mean? What does it look like? Why is it critically important in today’s world? Who inspires and leads us towards change? Sona Khosla, Benevity’s Chief Impact Officer, will be our host through conversations with some of the world’s leading purpose-driven people. Join us for season one, entitled Movements, by subscribing wherever you listen to podcasts.
May 04, 2021•3 min
