ABeam’s Pro Bono Activities

Actors who aim to solve social issues include non-profit organizations such as NPOs and NGOs, commercial businesses such as social venture companies, and other parties (governments, corporations, and individuals) that provide resources (people, goods, and money) to these entities, each tackling various social issues. In the social sector, where such a variety of actors exist, ABeam's vision for resolving social issues is to create an ecosystem (i.e., “collective impact”) in which diverse actors utilize their respective characteristics to resolve them.

​In order to establish this ecosystem, a cross-sectoral coordinator role is needed to aid connecting each actor and promote their value. ABeam intends to contribute to the promotion of solutions to social issues as a coordinator, taking advantage of the knowledge of social issues resolution and relationships it has cultivated over the years. As stated in Goal 17 of the SDGs, "Partnerships for the goals," which is also one of the company-wide materialities, ABeam places importance on co-creation and collaboration with stakeholders, and will encourage co-creation and collaboration among all actors through its role as a coordinator.

One of the activities that ABeam is actively pursuing to achieve this form of social issue resolution is pro bono work.

The term “Pro Bono” (from pro bono publico, Latin for "for the public good") refers to the participation of company employees and other working adults in social contribution activities and initiatives aimed at solving social issues by utilizing the expertise and skills they have developed in their career. Recently, as concepts such as “SDGs” and “CSV management” have become more widespread, an increasing number of companies are engaging in pro bono activities. But, as a commercial business, what is the meaning for us to partake in pro bono work?

As mentioned above, there are various organizations, both non-profit and commercial, that aim to support those on the ground who are working to solve a wide range of social issues. These days, entities such as NPOs and NGOs have conducted projects aimed at solving various social issues and have made solid contributions. However, behind the scenes, many organizations are struggling to raise funds, acquire skilled talents, and train their successors.

The reality is that many NPOs and NGOs lack the resources (people, goods, and money) to make a greater impact in the future. Under these circumstances, it is up to governments, foundations, individuals, and private companies such as ours to provide resources such as funds and know-how. Pro bono activities are particularly meaningful in that businesspeople can act as the “human” component, providing their expertise and skills to accelerate NPOs, NGOs, and other organizations’ projects that aim to solve social issues.

Based on the previously shared social environment, ABeam has two main objectives in undertaking pro bono activities.

The first of the objectives is “to use the consulting skills developed in our core business to help solve social issues.” We aim to indirectly provide solutions to remedy social issues by providing support to NPOs, NGOs, and other entities tackling them. With this goal in mind, we have provided pro bono support to NPOs and NGOs working in various fields in both Japan and overseas, helping them to promote their efforts to solve social issues through projects such as business strategy planning, operational reform, and fundraising support.

Our second objective in undertaking pro bono activities is to produce talents who can contribute to solving a wide range of social issues through practical experience. By engaging in pro bono activities, our employees can gain experience in a diverse range of industries compared to commercial projects. Our goal is to allow each consultant to grow and develop by experiencing tasks and roles otherwise difficult to experience and through friendly competition with people who hold diverse values, and ultimately to produce talents who can contribute to making the world a better place across a variety of fields.

ABeam will continue to engage in a wide range of pro bono activities based on the two pillars of promoting solutions to social issues and nurturing human resources capable of solving social issues similar to the case shared above.