ImpactInstitute is an advisory firm resulting from a formalised strategic merger between Social Impact Institute and Filtered Media, which marked its first anniversary on May 1.
The organisation offers purpose-driven advisory, storytelling and events services. It aims to help commercial and social sector organisations across Australia to scale their purpose and create measurable impact with stories that matter.
Co-CEOs Mark Jones and David Jack spoke to Mediaweek about the origin story of the merger, their shared vision for their client base, the company’s structure, and the exciting plans for ahead.
Social Impact Institute was a consulting business led by David Jack. It aimed to deliver specialist advisory services and opportunities with social sector organisations and produce expos for people who live with a disability, seniors, and aged care service providers.
Mark Jones and his wife Heather founded Filtered Media in 2011. It aimed at delivering purpose-driven storytelling services, including brand strategy, marketing, communications, P.R., social media, etc., to local and international clients in the corporate space.
Their partnership between the organisations initially began in 2018, having collaborated on work with clients. The organisations then became more acquainted as Filtered Media assisted with Social Impact’s rebranding.
R – Paula Cowan with David Jack and Mark Jones
The origin of the ImpactInstitute merger
Jones recalled the earliest discussions with Jack about a merger between Filtered and Social Impact began as far back as October 2020.
“We met around the board table. As we talked, it became apparent that the focus on purpose-driven organisations was getting to where people wanted more. I could see the demand for that in our client base. We started exploring the future of impact-driven organisations,” he said
Jones added: “When you put two visionaries in a room, we started dreaming up ideas. The conversation then started moving very quickly.”
The co-CEO explained that part of the appeal to merge was to “bring together different worlds.” By unifying corporate organisations doing good with their foundations, with social sector organisations looking to adopt structure, growth, and skills from the corporate world.
“We said what happens if we bring corporates and the social sector together. What would be the one thing that unites all of that, and obviously, the storytelling component is key,” Jones noted.
Mark Jones
Vision and Values
InstituteImpact’s vision is “to be the most respected impact advisory brands storytelling and events firm in Australia.”
Jones said ImpactInstitute is “driven by this notion that impact-driven leaders and organisations can change the world in positive, measurable, and meaningful ways. Our vision is to help leaders tangibly express their purpose in the real world, measure that difference and tell that story.”
One of the company’s essential elements the leaders worked hard together on getting right was their shared values, which Jones said made them stronger as a team.
“It’s only three – C.I.O.,” Jones said. “The first one is curiosity; we foster people to be interested, foster active learning and constantly be asking questions. The next one is impact – for the team to be mindful of what difference we make in the world. The last one is optimism which we love because it is about believing that there will be a great outcome.”
David Jack
Working with their clients
Jack shared that ImpactInstitute is currently working with UNICEF and Parents At Work, an H.R. consultancy, to establish a program to accredit organisations as family-friendly.
Jones noted they also work with the Benevolent Society, Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand, Adobe, Children’s Cancer Institute, W.F.S., RSPCA, and the education sector with the Western Sydney University, the University of Newcastle, and Australian Christian College.
Jack explained that they help their clients from strategy and program design to impact measurement framework and implementation, including videos and podcasts such as their C.M.O. show.
“The breadth of capability that we have collected is attractive to clients, some of whom are a little burned by the need to work with multiple organisations. Whilst we don’t have every resource, we offer a unique, integrated suite of services that we’re finding clients really value,” Jack said.
Becoming co-CEOs and how their partnership as leaders works
While one individual traditionally takes the role of C.E.O., Jones said he and Jack felt that they should lead the company together.
He explained that the decision was “very much about bringing two organisations together and creating a new culture, a new team. We wanted to lead it together. We both had the same vision and the same sort of picture as to how the team could work together.
“We brought these complementary skills. As we developed our strategies, it just made sense to do it together, rather than having one person lead and the other person off in some other sort of defined space,” Jones said.
Jack explained their fundamental principle is “right person, right seat” and adjusting parts of the role based on who the client is and the skills, capability, and experience required.
“There are some areas where Mark has exceptional skills and experience and should take leadership. I support and cheer him on. There are likewise areas where I perhaps take the lead. It doesn’t mean that we limit ourselves to those in that way. But it does mean one takes the lead and provides mentoring and support to the other.
“It’s always evolving, and it’s been a refreshing leadership journey. I don’t have to try to bluff my way through. I have a co-CEO who has great experience and expertise, and I’m able to lean into that and value that,” Jack added.
The structure of ImpactInstitute and their powerhouse general manager
Jones noted that the discussion about the company’s structure amid the merger was a crucial point that involved plenty of work and open, collaborative conversations with the team and all layers of the organisation.
Jack added that the ImpactInstitute has a board and executive leadership team (E.L.T.) comprised of the co-CEOs, GM Paula Cowan and Sarah Fairley, head of people and culture. The company also have a senior leadership team (S.L.T.) which includes the heads of departments including brand storytelling, impact advisory, production, and research.
Both Jones and Jack had nothing but praise for their general manager, a key figure in the smooth process of the merger.
Jones said: “Paula runs a lot of the day-to-day operational decisions about resourcing, who’s doing what on what project, what’s happening inside the organisation. It means that we don’t get mixed up in making too many operational decisions, and we get to focus on our strengths.”
Jack added: “Paula is exceptional, and she truly has a finger on the pulse right across the breadth of the business and can make astute business decisions as a result. She’s engaged vertically through all those leadership functions and holds it all together.”
The impact of Covid
Like many businesses in the industry, ImpactInstitute was not immune to the impact of Covid. Jack said it was an “enormously challenging period”, mainly for their events program over the last year to early this year.
But they were able to land their events on target thanks to the hard work of their events team and their marketing team. Jack added: “COVID has been a bit of a wild card for us to navigate through, but we’ve hit all those milestones. The Melbourne Disability Expo was just a week ago and was an incredibly successful event. We’ve got others scheduled that will roll out over the next few months.”
Jack also noted amid the pandemic, ImpactInstitute was able to attract new clients, particularly those interested in their new capability of impact storytelling.
“There’s been some great opportunities and some great feedback from our key stakeholders – staff, clients and new clients,” he added.
Milestones for ImpactInstitute
Looking to the year ahead, Jack noted that they would evaluate the company’s success on different fronts, including sustainable profits and losses, staff engagement, and client ratings.
Jack noted that ImpactInstitute’s performance has been good so far. “We probably anticipated it was going to take some time for staff and client metrics to head towards the spaces that we wanted them to be. We have probably achieved those positive milestone metrics a little sooner than I think we’d anticipated,” he said.
In terms of the company’s growth, Jones said they are moving from last year’s strategic theme of integration to the new theme of acceleration.
He also noted that they are on the hunt for new office space in Sydney’s Chatswood, to help mark a new chapter. “It will be a new office space for everybody. We have an opportunity to get a nice, shiny new office, which I’m excited about,” he added.
Outlook for ImpactInstitute in the year ahead
Looking to the year ahead, the co-CEOs have an optimistic outlook for ImpactInstitute and their work with their clients.
Jack said: “There have been some great opportunities. And some great feedback from our key stakeholders been staff, clients, and new clients. So, we’re pretty encouraged.”
Jones added: “We feel like we’re in a great spot. There’s a lot of energy and momentum. From our perspective, being in a place where we can contribute to the health of so many purpose-driven organisations are just fantastic.”
See also: ImpactInstitute announces eight new clients, 10 new team members
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Top image: L-R Mark Jones and David Jack