Professor Megan Kashner presented at the DPELC-MSL Speaker Series last Tuesday to a room full of students at the intersection of business and law. Kashner serves as the Director of Social Impact at Northwestern’s Kellogg School of Management. She is also the founder and CEO of Benevolent, a platform that invites individual givers to fill gaps in the safety net for low-income families. Her focus at Kellogg is developing socially responsible leaders who know how to recognize and address complex, intersecting challenges, an area where she has plenty of experience.

Kashner holds an M.B.A. from Kellogg, a Master’s from the University of Chicago’s School of Social Service Administration, and a B.A. in Public Policy from Brown University. A licensed clinical social worker and holder of “too many” degrees, she also has experience on the ground level, working in many sectors of impact. Becoming agile was foundational and provided her with the insight that has made Kashner a leader in her field.

Kashner encouraged students to focus on finding purpose in their work in lieu of using the corporate social responsibility model of the past. In today’s workplace, people want to feel good and connected: Millennials, investors, executives, and companies drive this shift. This permeates upward and has driven positive social change. Externally, social media increasingly connects companies and their boards to consumers in a new way. Kashner’s advice for navigating the changed landscape: “We can’t always be perfect, but we all can make an effort to keep social impact in mind.” She suggested a variety of ways students can apply this mindset.

• Dig deep: “Be the people who ask the additional questions to improve social impact.”
• Forge impact through pro-bono work, whether or not you end up in the legal field.
• Let your money talk through investment, divestment, micro-lending, or philanthropic giving.
• Weave purpose and practice into the work you do, whether it be through human capital, legal support, or regular volunteer engagement.

Her parting words were those of patience. Northwestern Law students have plenty of time to engage in purpose-driven activity. “It’s okay if you can’t do it yet or if you don’t do it all the time,” Kashner said. “Just don’t lose that thread.”