I am so excited to share with you the conversation I had with Rob Michalak, who has done some incredible things and works for a company that I love, Ben & Jerry’s. Rob is the Social Mission Special Projects Director there, and the core of his role is to ensure that their products and missions can thrive together. In our conversation, we talked about internal and external accountability, and how Ben & Jerry’s works to create equity and justice through the entire supply chain, from farmers to customers, and putting their values into action.

Topics in this episode

• Tension between the social interest of the company and the economic purpose of the company
• Looking at why Ben & Jerry’s is more expensive than other brands - from value and quality interests
• Creating brand loyalty with customers, as well as within the supply chain
• Living the values within the company that you wish to see externally
• Having confidence in the company’s core values, even when they come into question
• Creating an independent board of directors, made up of activists
• Results-based accountability
• What’s the best we can do today? And how can we raise the bar tomorrow?

Connect

• Ben & Jerry’s Website
• LinkedIn

Other recent conversations we really enjoyed:

• Elevating Business Resource Groups into Business Practices
• Our Environment, Community, and Businesses All Impact Social Change