Creating a social impact requires more than just engagement. Especially within organizations where interests, structures and collaborations are complex, it is essential to get sharp what you do, why you do it and what it actually yields. For Laurens Cramer, branch manager Leiden at DUWO, that was an important reason to participate in the Social Intrapreneurship Course.
With his background in municipalities and his current role within a social housing corporation, Laurens already knew a lot about social issues. Yet he sought depth: not so much in what DUWO does, but in how the social character can be portrayed more sharply and convincingly.
“Sometimes you have to make what you do to gain trust from other parties. What exactly do you do and what is the effect of what you do? Make sure you make the social value visible and measurable.”
Organize the social side more sharply
'Before I started at DUWO, I worked for municipalities for twenty years,' says Laurens. 'I have now been working for the housing corporation for three and a half years. The social entrepreneurship and the social impact you can make appeal to me at DUWO. I think we're already doing well. But it can be better, the social side can be sharper.'
That desire to formulate the social issue more precisely and to substantiate it more firmly brought him to the course. Not because he was at the beginning, but precisely because he wanted to professionalize further.
Reflection on yourself and on others
Laurens already had extensive experience with education and training. Nevertheless, the course proved valuable, precisely because it not only transfers knowledge, but also confronts.
'I have already completed two financial courses and several training courses on leadership. I have a pretty good image of myself,' he says. 'Yet such training always helps. You are confronted with yourself and you see how others react to you.' What he noticed was how educational it is to look not only at yourself, but also at the dynamics of others.
'It gives a good picture of how a person is made. It is good to realize that people can be complicated creatures. Especially when it comes to change.”
Value of diversity in the group
As with other participants, the composition of the group played a major role in the learning experience. “The diversity in the group is valuable. Not only in sector and function, but also in where everyone is in the process,' Laurens explains.
Due to those differences, it became visible that change processes take place at multiple levels at the same time.
'You see the struggles and challenges for each individual. It is good to recognize that at all levels. You can translate them to the people you work with so that you can better understand them and help them.'
Sparring with an experienced coach
A distinctive element of the course for Laurens were the individual coach interviews.
'The conversations with the personal coach were a highlight of the training for me,' he says. 'You talk to someone you don't know, but who is familiar with social entrepreneurship and has a lot of experience in it.'
According to him, the strength was in the sharp, practical reflection: 'What do you have? What do you need? What have you already done, and have you tried this and that before?' Those conversations yielded multiple insights that he could immediately apply.
Business to gain trust
An important lesson for Laurens was the importance of making explicit social impact. Not only internally, but also towards financiers, partners and governments.
'Sometimes you have to deal with what you do to gain the trust of other parties,' he explains. "What exactly is that, what do you do and what is the effect of what you do?"
For DUWO, this means making it concrete what social student housing entails and what the effect would be if it were not there. 'That is not without obligation, sweet and nice in name. It has results. You have to make that measurable, for example with KPIs, zero measurements and follow-up measurements.'
Storytelling: making the right to exist visible
Demonstrating impact was also reflected in the storytelling component. 'How do you start the conversation, how do you build the conversation, what do you need to make what you say tangible?' Laurens says.
He deliberately uses personal and recognizable examples, such as his own experience in finding a room as a student, compared to the reality of students with a care question or status holders. 'For them, we are not just a student housing, we are a necessity.'
By telling that story more sharply, the right to exist of the organization also becomes clearer. 'This is important for financing, collaborations with healthcare institutions and agreements with municipalities.'
Making choices in change
The course provided Laurens with many insights and clues. At the same time, he emphasizes that making an impact also requires choices.
'It is indoable to put everything into practice right away,' he says. 'You have to decide what you pick up first and what you put on the agenda for later.'
It is precisely that strategic look - at timing, route and stakeholders - that helps to sustainably shape social change.