Alumni insights: How to advance your career in social impact

On Thursday, 24 October 2024 the Centre for Social Impact hosted a live webinar on ‘How to advance your career in social impact’. Featuring insights from four alumni, this event explored the expanding career opportunities in social impact and the power of postgraduate education for individuals and their employers.

WATCH THE FULL WEBINAR BELOW.

The webinar kicked off with an exciting announcement from CSI CEO Arminé Nalbandian : CSI is offering over $100,000 in scholarships for 2025 to study social impact at their partner universities of UWA, UNSW, Swinburne, and Flinders.

As CSI UWA Director Professor Paul Flatau noted, the demand for social impact professionals is growing both in Australia and around the globe. This demand is not confined to a single industry or sector, but spans various fields from technology to finance to manufacturing, as well as the not-for-profit space.

In Australia, not-for-profit organisations are growing significantly, with an economic contribution equivalent to 8.5% of GDP and employing 1.42 million people, making the sector Australia’s second largest employing industry after healthcare.

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is also playing a greater role for both consumers and businesses, helping fuel desire for skilled professionals capable of navigating these expectations and effectively engaging with diverse stakeholders.

Susan Pizzati – Course Director at CSI Swinburne – provided more detail on some of the key abilities that employers are seeking. These include:

• Understanding Social Impact: A solid understanding of what social impact actually is, recognizing that there are many varying definitions out there.
• Key Concepts of Social Change: Employers are looking for individuals who have an awareness and understanding of the key concepts and issues relating to social change, including how social change actually occurs.
• Social Impact Ecosystem Knowledge: It’s crucial to have an understanding of the social impact ecosystem and how to work collaboratively with key stakeholders within that system.
• Multi-Sector Experience: Employers highly value staff that possess either multi-sector experience or at least an understanding of the key stakeholders across the ecosystem, as this is incredibly beneficial for effective collaboration.
• Innovation & Entrepreneurship: Innovation and entrepreneurial skills are also highly sought after, particularly regarding technological innovation and how new and emerging tech can apply to social issues.
• Social Impact Measurement: Understanding the key issues, challenges, and frameworks that apply to social impact measurement is highly beneficial, as organisations are grappling with how to best measure and evaluate their impact.
• Complex Problem-Solving Skills: People who work most effectively in this space tend to be those who can understand, manage, and work through complex contexts, which is vital given the incredible complexity of social issues.

Next, Royal Lifesaving Society WA CEO Peter Leaversuch discussed how systems thinking has transformed his organisation's approach to working in remote Aboriginal communities, with his postgraduate studies at CSI helping to provide the frameworks to foster cross-sector collaboration.

“The systems thinking and leadership frameworks in the social impact course helped us progress change, covering concepts like what it takes to truly collaborate with others, the importance of common agendas, shared values and shared measurement and progress,” Peter said. “Reflecting on how our work has evolved, I think we have a better understanding of reciprocity and why it's so important in systems thinking.”

Philanthropy Australia CEO Maree Sidey shared her leadership journey, the pivotal role that social impact education played and the importance of professional development from an employer perspective.

“As a CEO, I do look for people who have deliberately gone out and invested in their professional development, and thought about how studies in social impact will add to the value of the organisation,” said Maree, who completed an MBA (Social Impact) at CSI UNSW.

“Why study social impact? Social issues are complex… in order to actually lead on them and contribute to them and think about your role in them and your organisation's role in tackling social issues, you need to have a framework for articulating that.”

Australian Alliance to End Homelessness COO Carman Wilson completed a Graduate Certificate in Social Impact earlier this year, describing the course’s value to her career.

“Doing this graduate certificate has really given me a greater and deeper understanding of why and how we use the collective impact approach, and why it is so pivotal in our work with the AAEH,” she said. “I feel that I can better apply these as well when hopefully securing further funding opportunities, so we can ensure our long term sustainability.”

Suzanne Findlay , Social Impact Manager at Sacred Heart Mission, described her successful career in the corporate sector before making a shift into the for-purpose world, where she has already made a significant contribution by working to implement Victoria’s first ever social impact bond.

“At the time, many in the finance industry told me that with my professional experience, I didn't need to study – but they were wrong,” said Suzanne, who is a graduate of the Master of Social Investment and Philanthropy at CSI Swinburne.

“Through my postgraduate studies, I gained foundational skills, theoretical knowledge and practical insights, particularly in areas like impact measurement and evaluation.”

Find out more about our courses and scholarship opportunities.