"Lessons from a Fortune 50 Social Intrapreneur"
Bio
Matt Smith is Director of the PepsiCo Foundation, leading the Foundation’s nutrition and employee engagement efforts globally. Matt leads the Foundation’s investments in the essential elements of a sustainable food system and brings the expertise and passion of PepsiCo employees to partners including the World Food Programme, Global Foodbanking Network and Rise Against Hunger. Matt also leads the Foundation’s signature nutrition operation, Food for Good, an award-winning initiative that utilizes PepsiCo’s unique capabilities to make healthy food accessible for low-income communities and for families affected by natural disasters. Through collaboration with non-profit partners, small businesses, and the government, Food for Good has grown to provide more than 25 million nutritious meals to underserved communities since 2009.
Abstract
With more than 800 million people hungry globally, we need solutions that match the size of the problem. Each of us needs to come to the table – academia, non-profits, government, and the private sector. Too often, all we expect from business is traditional philanthropy. PepsiCo is taking a revolutionary approach – combining philanthropy and the expertise of its employees globally to co-develop and operate scalable nutrition solutions together with partners. We believe that true impact lies on the front lines.
The seeds of this new approach at PepsiCo were planted more than a decade ago by Southern Dallas community leaders. They taught us that real solutions must be built on mutual trust and respect; must make nutrition accessible, particularly fresh fruit and vegetables; and must create jobs in the community to break the cycle of poverty. What began in Dallas as “Food for Good” has now delivered more than 25 million meals across the United States, created hundreds of jobs, and is expanding globally.
Matt Smith, Director of the PepsiCo Foundation, will share stories from his journey creating and scaling a social enterprise within a Fortune 50 company – both the challenges and victories in boardrooms and food deserts.