CASE is an award-winning research and education center based at Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business. Since 2001, CASE has been a leader in the field of social impact, serving as a hub for teaching, research, and practitioner engagement.
MISSION: CASE prepares leaders and organizations with the business skills to achieve lasting social change
Support for two key audiences
INSPIRING & EMPOWERING NEXT GENERATION LEADERS. We help Duke MBA students build the skills needed to become leaders of social impact, in whatever career path they choose. Our students have ample opportunities to design their own development path through two years of a rich curriculum paired with real-world experiential learning. Our fellowships build a supportive community among students invested in impact. Alumni emerge with skills, networks, and experience they apply to drive positive change all over the world.
DRIVING BEST PRACTICE IN THE IMPACT ECONOMY. We support impact practitioners to improve their ability to define, manage, and achieve impact. We have been engaged by some of the most significant global organizations for our rigor, unbiased perspective, and ability to distill and communicate key factors for success. We have educated tens of thousands of professionals through our online tools, research, thought leadership, and executive trainings, enabling them to continually improve the social impact of their organizations.
Engaging leaders and organizations in four content areas
LAUNCHING & SCALING SOCIAL VENTURES. Social ventures draw upon the best thinking of both the business and nonprofit worlds to develop innovative strategies for addressing unmet needs, then testing and refining those solutions. CASE researches and shares best practices on the different pathways enterprises can utilize to launch, manage, and scale proven solutions and drive significant change. Learn more.
IMPACT INVESTING. Funding is a critical component of any journey to launch and scale impact solutions. The CASE i3 Initiative on Impact Investing bridges the enterprise and investor perspectives, helping enterprises cultivate the right investment partners, and helping investors of all kinds – foundations, venture capital funds, pension funds, corporations, CDFIs, and large asset owners – develop more robust methodologies to achieve both financial and social return on their capital. Learn more.
IMPACT MEASUREMENT & MANAGEMENT. Driving positive change through capital, product, or service innovations requires a rigorous approach to Impact Measurement and Management. Enterprises must assess the relationships between their activities and impact outcomes. Investors must gauge the impact they generate with their capital. CASE articulates best practice, develops tools, and leads trainings for both enterprises and investors building their capability in impact management. Learn more.
CORPORATE IMPACT. Global challenges require the attention and action of all parts of the economy. For the corporate sector, the traditional tenets of shareholder capitalization are expanding to stakeholder capitalism. Corporations are adopting social innovation and stakeholder engagement approaches to drive positive change. At the same time, standards for ESG management and reporting are developing. CASE translates the impact practices that have evolved over decades to the corporate realm. Learn more.
The challenges we face are great, but the ingenuity of the impact economy is inspiring. Nonprofit and for-profit impact enterprises continue to innovate and drive systems level change. Stakeholder capitalism is changing the conversations in corporate board rooms and in MBA classrooms. Impact investing continues to grow and provide critical fuel for social change. Policy and citizen action drives greater attention to social and environmental issues. Our students are increasingly demanding that business be used as a force for good. With these inspiring trends, CASE is more committed than ever to preparing leaders and organizations with the business skills needed to achieve lasting social change. Join us!