Defined

Efficiency, Productivity and Responsibility

Social Symmetry is a management consultancy that helps public, private and nonprofit organizations identify strategies and implement tactics to drive positive, sustained, measurable social impact.

Across the Public, Private and Nonprofit Sectors

Making a positive social impact requires the responsible pursuit of efficiency and productivity. On a sector-by-sector basis, even an organization-by-organization basis, those outcomes will vary tremendously.

• In the private sector it can mean aligning your mission with a relevant charitable organization or pursuing eco-friendly materials for production.
• In the public sector it can mean identifying the ideal private sector partner to help meet the broadest needs of your constituent base or increasing the transparency with which you make and communicate decisions.
• In the nonprofit sector it can mean expanding your "funding" strategy to include earned-income projects or restructuring your organization so you can provide consistent feedback to donors on the specific impacts of their contributions.

Positive social impact requires a focus on positive social outcomes. Social Symmetry helps you balance those outcomes with your mission and objectives to ensure that both your organization and its decisions are sustainable over the long-term.

Philosophy

Understanding You. Understanding What’s Around You.

We approach problems with a strict focus on understanding your organization first. An engagement with Social Symmetry begins with a detailed understanding of the question you are trying to answer (it may be a problem, it may be an opportunity). It is crucial that we define the question, and understand how far along you are toward identifying your answer.

Defining the Question – In Your Terms

Organizations have come to us at various stages within the lifecycle, ranging from nothing more than a question (“How do we develop an environmental strategy?”) to a very specific answer (“We need to launch this specific product in less than three months, in-time for the upcoming holiday season.”). We help you when you no longer have the time, resources, energy, or expertise to advance the discussion further.

The next step in the process is to understand the question within the context of your existing stakeholders. Our engagement will fail if we disregard the needs of the groups and individuals who have sustained your organization to date. Examples of stakeholders include:

• Employees
• Customers
• Donors
• Partners
• Investors
• Shareholders
• Constituents

Defining the Question – In Broader Terms

There are two sets of stakeholders that Social Symmetry has identified who typically do not factor into an organization’s plans:

• Planet – The environment where your organization operates and that is affected by your activities.
• Community – The communities and people who inhabit the environment affected by your organization.

Once Social Symmetry has understood your question, and placed it within the context of your existing stakeholders, we conduct an analysis on the impacts your organization has on these two stakeholders. This analysis can be focused on a particular initiative, campaign, or product tied specifically to the original question, though in some cases, SS has been asked to conduct larger “Impact Audits” that identify a previously unconsidered set of stakeholders.

The purpose of this assessment is to identify the opportunities for real change and positive social impact that exist with respect to these two stakeholders, and understand them in practical terms as they impact the top and bottom lines.

Finding Symmetry – Reconciling the Two

The term “Symmetry” came to us when we realized that these two stakeholder analyses were often perceived as being at odds. In actuality, as case study after case study has shown, the potential for greater efficiency, increased profitability, and long-term sustainability exists when all of these stakeholders are at least factored into the final solution.

Our job is to identify the best answer to your question that positively affects the largest number of stakeholders outlined above. Challenge us. We will help you find a solution that improves the overall social impact of the organization, and positively impacts a majority (if not all) of the stakeholders positively over the long-term.

Engagement Model

Say Hello (and Goodbye) When You’re Ready

Each engagement has the potential to involve four distinct segments: identifying the opportunity, determining the strategy, delivery of the project, and a study, of what lies ahead of what came before. But we recognize that each engagement will have a different point of entry and exit for Social Symmetry.

Some organizations are looking for the opportunities facing their organization. Other organizations are looking to outsource the solution to an organization who can execute. And some organizations need someone to study the landscape and determine what they’ve done well, or what they can do better. We have a demonstrated ability to serve in all capacities.

• Opportunity – Identifying the opportunities that exist for your organization based on the stakeholders we have identified, and the goals and priorities you have established.
• Strategy – Determining the most effective strategy going forward, from defining key themes and messages to outlining a project and resource plan to execute on the opportunity at hand.
• Delivery – Translating the strategy into tactics, and working with you to deliver on the promises you have made and the expectations you have set…for all parties involved.
• Study – Taking a step back when necessary to evaluate what lies ahead, or what has been accomplished. The engagement model is a cycle, and we recognize that any opportunity is identified as a result of research, while any project delivered must also be subject to thorough analysis—it’s not enough to know a project was a success (or a failure), it’s important to know why.

Our success is based on our ability to remain flexible in meeting your demands and needs while helping you optimize the skills and talent you already have at your disposal, within your organization. We are confident that helping you find better ways to leverage your existing resources makes us a more desirable partner when that next “question” arises.