November 21, 2023

Crown Develops Strategic Action on Social Impact Strategy

Crown develops strategic action on Social Impact Strategy with the help of Business in the Community.

Crown Worldwide Group provides a wide range of services to customers who seek support with international assignment management, relocations, information management, workspace design and office relocation, fine art movement and logistics. Crown is an extremely diverse business, operating both globally and across various regions of the UK.

Crown wanted to make sure it has a progressive agenda. Crown is already engaged in a variety of social impact and community investment activity across the UK but felt it lacked a clear strategy to provide direction and focus. Crown wanted support to align all the great work it was doing, increase its impact, and develop a clear strategic direction.

How Business in the Community helped

Chelsie Riley, Business in the Community (BITC) Social Impact Adviser, supported Crown in creating an action plan for developing this work over the next 12 to 18 months. Delivering advice and guidance to ensure the organisation is in line with leading practice. Chelsie did this through regular catch-ups with the sustainability team. This informal, relaxed engagement style proved crucial to building a strong working relationship and ensuring they were on the same page.

With support, Crown completed a stakeholder mapping workshop so that it could really understand which of its stakeholders were critical, and who it could have the greatest impact on. Through this work, Crown were able to define its communities by looking beyond a typical definition of community and included employees and value chain within the stakeholder map. Crown undertook desk-based research on defined communities to ensure it responded to local communities in a needs-led way. Crown’s Social Impact Adviser was able to ensure the research was in-depth, impartial and provided guidance on carrying it out.

“We are deeply grateful for Chelsie’s insights and highly recommend working with Chelsie and BITC to anyone seeking to create meaningful change.”
Ann Beavis, Head of Sustainable Development, Crown Workspace

The outcome

Moving into the second year of Advisory support, the sustainability team at Crown wanted to engage the senior leadership team to secure top level buy-in for this work. BITC carried out a “Defining Your Impact: Theory of Change” workshop with the senior leadership team. This session supported participants in understanding the benefits and challenges of measuring impact. Participants left the session feeling confident on the steps needed to carry out a Theory of Change, the methodology used by BITC to demonstrate impact.

The next stage for Crown will be to get a clear understanding on the impact it wants to create as an organisation and engage employees across the UK, through Listening Circles with its Social Impact Adviser’s support.

Throughout the process Crown has progressed from having numerous programmes and initiatives to being strategic and focused on its Social Impact work. Through Advisory work with its Social Impact Adviser, Crown has gained insight, knowledge, and a sounding board to structure this work.

Ann Beavis, Head of Sustainable Development at Crown Workspace said; “Collaborating with Chelsie has been instrumental in elevating our social impact strategy. Her expertise and guidance have enabled us to develop a more strategic and authentic approach to making a difference. Her guidance has been invaluable in shaping our thinking and actions. We are deeply grateful for her insights and highly recommend working with Chelsie and BITC to anyone seeking to create meaningful change.”