Maryland Smith is pushing students and business leaders to create a better world through business. That means considering multiple stakeholders – how a company’s environmental, social and corporate governance policies impact the world beyond just returning profits to shareholders. ESG is gaining momentum among businesses and investors and was the topic of Maryland Smith’s inaugural ESG Conference: Reimagine Your Impact, hosted by the Center for Social Value Creation on May 6, 2022.

Beyond quantifying and getting their boards to understand traditional financial risks such as credit and market risk, corporate risk officers are grappling with a host of nontraditional risks associated with and ranging from cyber to ESG (environmental, social and governance) and DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion).

He’s just a semester into his college career at the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business, but freshman Michael Zhao already knows exactly what he wants to do for the rest of his life – use a finance and computer science education to make the world a better place.

When industry professionals want to take the next step in their career and focus on a bigger picture, the Conference for Value Creation can help. Maryland Smith’s Nima Farshchi, who chaired the first day of the three-day conference this year, says the event offers a robust discussion of the definition of value creation in business, showcases various cultures and perspectives, and explores how to utilize research to create positive change in industries.

Lee-Ellen Myles believes businesses are ideally positioned to leverage their influence to make impactful change. It’s a belief that has been validated in her coursework at UMD and Maryland Smith, and during her 2021 summer internship with Council Fire, a consulting firm that works to help purpose-driven organizations thrive by creating lasting economic, social and environmental value.

The Center for Social Value Creation (CSVC) in the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business invites UMD students, faculty, staff, alumni and the greater College Park community to participate as multidisciplinary teams in a three-day design thinking challenge toward a more equitable and sustainable transportation system.

The Center for Social Value Creation’s Impact Consulting Fellowship (ICF) program at the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business provides for students (both Smith and non-Smith at UMD) at the undergrad, masters and doctoral levels to work in cross-functional teams to provide pro-bono consulting services to impact-driven organizations across the country, as well as internationally.