One by One

In a tough economic year, Amway Europe showed both cross-border collaboration, and generous local support.

In Amway affiliates across Europe, there were runs, walks, bikes and swims to raise money for children’s causes. Many were focused on support of UNICEF, a partner that Amway has supported in big and small ways since the early 2000s. And in show of solidarity, Amway and its employees and business owners across Europe raised money to build a third preschool in a remote area of Turkey, in partnership with UNICEF.

Amway Russia continued to grow its Child’s Smile project to equip government hospitals with playrooms for children, adding 16 more this year, totaling more than 100 to date. Amway also expanded its support for children in orphanages and rehabilitation centers, by scaling up a therapy program with local circus troupes. Interactive circus programs helped to speed recovery from abuse and neglect for more than 1,100 children this year.

And play was on the mind of soccer athletes in six cities across Russia who took part in Equal in Sport. This innovative program pairs disabled children with their able-bodied peers to compete in soccer tournaments as equals. In partnership with Amway Russia, Amway Italy and the AC Milan professional soccer team, Equal in Sport tournament winners traveled to Italy for special treatment – and a very special game.

Finally, Amway employees from across Europe gave young refugees a chance at a better life, by spending time sharing helpful knowledge that would help ensure success in daily life in Germany. From woodworking to bike riding, more than 100 teenagers learned some great skills, and made some great friends.

There were many more activities across Europe in 2012 … and many more planned for the upcoming year!

As the Amway One by One campaign matures in each of our markets, we find ourselves looking for threads of innovation and impact that we can learn from and export to other areas of the world. We’re also constantly looking at models to plan and measure against.

One of the most interesting pieces we’ve seen recently was published by Stanford Social Innovation Review. Called “Collective Impact,” authors John Kania and Mark Kramer propose a framework of organized thinking around bringing many different players together to move the needle on social causes at the macro level.

We can’t help but compare this to the most successful Amway One by One partnerships, and the campaign as a whole. The Collective Impact framework proposes five conditions of success for large-scale social change through cross-sector collaboration:

1. A common agenda
2. Shared measurement systems
3. Mutually reinforcing activities
4. Conscious communication
5. A backbone support organization

As a global program with grassroots mobilization, the Amway One by One campaign, while broad reaching and organic, is successful because of the way it supports these basic principles. More specifically, we are seeing exciting examples of Collective Impact models in countries where Amway One by One is the most mature:

A Common Agenda in Russia: A hospital experience can be scary for children, and often hinders the recovery process. Amway has worked with the government, NGOs, community hospitals and local Amway distributors across a vast geography to create a common agenda around creating great play spaces for children in government hospitals. To date, they have built more than 100 hospitals accessible by more than 130,000 children across the country.

Shared Measurement Systems in Mexico: As the Amway business grew around the world and Nutrilite products became a key part of our marketing strategies and scientific expertise, we knew we could use our expertise and influence to help with the issue of chronic malnutrition in children around the world. But we also knew that the scale could only be achieved through proven success and partnerships with on-the-ground agencies. In Mexico, we used global recommendations from the World Health Organization, partnered with a trusted organization called Un Kilo de Ayuda, and measured results through the Mexico Department of Health and Sciences. The results were outstanding, but made more significant because of the shared measurement during the clinical studies.

Mutually reinforcing activities in the United States: Inspired by an academic study around the phytonutrient gap in American diets and a subsequent campaign through our Nutrilite nutrition brand, Amway built a partnership with Boys and Girls Clubs of America to teach urban youth about nutrition through hands-on gardening. While Nutrilite continues to provide thought leadership and research at the health and policy level, Amway distributors have plugged into Boys and Girls Clubs locally to mentor and provide expertise.

Conscious Communication in Korea: Collective impact programs can be difficult to coordinate, and even more so when a program is new and innovative. In South Korea, Amway is partnering with a number of stakeholders – the government, academia, NGOs and Amway distributors – to provide innovative education for underserved children. How is that accomplished? Constant, consistent, conscious communication from all parties. Not only do the programs include measurement and reporting, but program plans also include events that showcase learnings to all parties and reinforce the value of the partnership.

A Backbone Support Organization in China: Children of migrating families are often underserved when it comes to education and nutrition. To build sustainable solutions, Amway has used its local understanding of children’s issues, its national partnership experience with the government, and its ability to mobilize people to serve. The Amway Charity Foundation in China was created for that purpose, and has been successful because of a dedicated history of collaboration and support of children’s causes.

In our hometown, sports that don’t include snow and cold have moved indoors.

The same is true in Russia, where finals of the Equal in Sport soccer program took place last month in Moscow. Nine teams from five cities participated, with some young players experiencing their first trip in an airplane to arrive in the capital city.

Through the Equal in Sport program, Amway works with Perspectiva to provide the opportunity for low income and special needs children ages 11 to 14 to compete in soccer games with their peers. The winning team visits a famous soccer team. Last year, it included a trip to Italy to visit AC Milan.

One 12-year-old boy who showed amazing talent, really affected the hearts of our volunteers. His family does not have the resources to pay for a uniform or league fees, and he often skips meals because there is not enough food at home. Yet through this program, his dream is alive to play for one of the best clubs in the world.

On the same team is an 11-year-old who suffers from cerebral palsy, which makes it hard for him to walk and he often falls down. But through this experience, he is calm and comfortable with his team. His teammates are patient and helpful, and he shares with them his vast knowledge about the best Italian soccer clubs – Milan and Juventus are his favorites.

As the weather turns cold outside, the friendships shine an inspiring light for the world to see.

Thanks to Karin Schmid and Julia Urakcheeva  for sharing this story.