Matthew Bishop’s keynote address gave way to an “Oxford-style” debate on the following motion: This house believes you can maximize social returns by maximizing financial returns.

The four debaters, who did not necessarily believe in the arguments they were making but rather were playing parts to suit the debate format, included Alvaro Rodriguez (Ignia Capital), Steve Zuckerman (Self-Help), Elizabeth Funk (Unitas), and Shari Berenbach (Calvert Foundation).

Rodriguez argued in favor of the motion.  He said the profit margin is a great metric because it “gives you discipline.” He said that we’ve been trying to attack poverty with a non-commercial model, and now it’s time to “take out the big guns.”  He called profit a means to an end.  He said, “The best tool to eradicate poverty is profit.”

Funk joined Rodriguez in supporting the motion, mainly due to the discipline that profit maximization brings to organizations.  She sees great value in being able to tap into business expertise.  She feels that it makes sense to “harness economic forces to do the most good the most quickly.” She also spoke articulately about how the poor do not want a handout.  What they want, she argued, is to learn how to lift themselves up out of poverty through business.

Zuckerman argued against the motion.  He said that he sees a role for social enterprise in solving social problems, but that maximizing financial returns is not always optimal or efficient.

Berenbech agreed with Zuckerman.  She noted that social enterprise options can only address a small percentage of the world’s problems.  She said that many profit maximization models actually rely on a layer of donated (philanthropic) resources that energize the whole capital pool.  She also reminded us of the other definition of social capital, which relates to building networks, community, etc.  Keeping in mind this other definition, social capital does not necessary have to mean that one is profiting at the expense of the other.

While the motion was narrowly defeated by the 600+ in audience, I think the quote of the debate came from Alvaro Rodriguez, who stated that those who serve the poor are often described as making a sacrifice, while those who seek profits are described as being driven by greed.  He called this view “baggage.” He noted that not all people who serve the poor are making a sacrifice and not all people who make money are driven by greed.  He called on all of us to “leave the baggage outside.” “Let’s move forward and change the world!” he said.